VPAT accessibility: A legal responsibility or a means to improve user experience
What is VPAT accessibility?
Before delving into the question of 508 accessibility, let’s refresh our minds about what a voluntary product accessibility template (VPAT) is. A VPAT is a document that is used by vendors and manufacturers of information and communication technology (ICT) products and services to explain how their products and services, such as software, hardware, electronic content, e-commerce, support documentation, etc., conform to the set accessibility standards and guidelines.
And what is accessibility? Considered from an individual level, accessibility refers to the ease with which an individual is able to use, navigate, or sail through an ICT product or service without wanting or needing some kind of outside explanation, help, or pause for inability to accomplish what they aspire with the product or service.
VPAT accessibility encompasses the practices of using a VPAT to identify and deal with obstacles that prevent people with disabilities from using, sailing through, or navigating ICT products and services. It entails choosing the correct section 508 accessibility to use in documenting the accessibility level of an ICT product or service, conducting a comprehensive VPAT audit of the product or service, filling out the appropriate VPAT form using the information obtained from the VPAT audit to generate an accessibility conformance report (ACR), and making the ACR publicly accessible.
The history of VPAT accessibility
VPAT accessibility sprung up to foster conformity with the Revised Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, which indicates that it originally had a legal responsibility connotation. Section 508 requires U.S. federal agencies to ensure that their ICT is accessible to people with disabilities, unless certain exceptions apply.
The VPAT was developed to provide a standard reporting format for documenting the accessibility of ICT products and services, thus, making it easier for procurement departments to conduct preliminary assessments of the conformance of an ICT product or service to the established accessibility standards.
Since the VPAT’s development in 2001, ICT manufacturers and vendors have been facing growing pressure to conform to multiple accessibility standards: Section 508, the web content accessibility guidelines (WCAG), the European Union (EU) accessibility standards, and the international (INT) accessibility standards.
VPAT accessibility as a legal responsibility
As the name suggests, VPAT accessibility is voluntary. ICT product or service manufacturers and vendors may choose not to produce or furnish a VPAT ACR. However, the legal construction in various jurisdictions requires obtaining and assessing VPAT accessibility as one critical stage in the accessible procurement process.
For example, any ICT product or service manufacturer and vendor who wants the U.S. federal organizations to purchase their products or services must comply with Section 508 and the attendant policies and practices, which make VPAT accessibility a legal responsibility for ICT manufacturers and vendors who want the federal organizations to procure their products or services.
The existing legal environment provides a framework for buyers of ICT products and services to request to see a business’ VPAT report for a particular product or service, and for the vendor or manufacturer who is requested to provide the information to the buyer.
Therefore, legally, both buyers and sellers of ICT products and services share responsibility for ensuring VPAT accessibility as best practice in making ICT products and services accessible to people with disabilities.
VPAT accessibility’s moral responsibility
While VPAT accessibility started off as a legal responsibility, the pressure caused by the practice has made many businesses and organizations appreciate the benefits of making their ICT products and services accessible to people with disabilities.
For example, businesses and organizations are increasingly learning that VPAT accessibility improves the user experience for their products and services, which deepens their market penetration into the huge market comprised of people with disabilities.
Products and services are also being embraced by people without disabilities, including the elderly or those with temporary conditions such as having an injury that prevents one from using their favorite limb to navigate through an ICT product or service, or not finding one’s eye lenses when you need them for reading Internet content. Buyers tend to buy products and services with accessible features because the features often come in handy when a user encounters such temporary setbacks or becomes older.
Therefore, VPAT accessibility’s origins had a legal push associated with them, but with time, ICT manufacturers and vendors are realizing that it improves the user experience of their products and services. This translates to improved profits for the vendor or manufacturer, expanded markets and deeper market penetration, and an enhanced appreciation of areas of a product or service to improve through VPAT audits before releasing the product or service into the market.
Get help with VPAT accessibility today
Conducting a VPAT audit on your ICT products or services can help you reduce the risk of litigation under the existing accessibility laws. It can also help you win contracts from accessibility-conscious businesses and organizations, enhance the quality of your product or service, or improve the image of your brand in the market.
Get a quick VPAT accessibility quote today by placing a call to (626) 486-2201, and see how easily you can be assisted to have your ICT products or services VPAT compliant.