As of June 28, many things will change, from the ATM menu, through the gas station’s payment terminal, to the website where you make your purchases online. The reason? It is the day that the European directive in accessibility comes into force. The objective of this standard is to facilitate the use of these elements, especially by people who have some type of sensory or motor disability.
Products and services it affects. The text details products that will have to adapt to the new frame. Banks automatic ATMs are an example, but will affect all types of hardware equipment and also at the software level. These are the main ones:
- Computer equipment for general use: computers, tablets, smartphones and their operating systems.
- Self -service terminals: ATMs, ticket vending machines, shift dispensers and their operating systems
- Telecommunications: smartphones and other equipment to access telecommunication services. Also telephone and internet services.
- Electronic readers
- Audiovisual Communication Services: As streaming or digital television platforms,
- Transport services: Websites, mobile applications, electronic tickets and real -time information about the trip.
- Electrical, water or gas services.
- Banking services for consumers.
- Electronic books and software for reading.
- Electronic commerce: online stores and sales platforms.
- Emergencies: 112 calls.
The three commandments of accessibility. The regulations affect countless equipment and the requirements vary for each of them. However, all have a common framework that has three major objectives: that they are available by more than one sensory channel (visual, auditory or tactile), that are easy to understand and that can be perceived by all users.
ATMs, payment terminals and the like. ATMs that meet the regulations must meet a series of specific requirements. For example, they will have to offer an auditory option for blind users, in addition to allowing the use of headphones for a matter of privacy. The keys and controls must be noticeable to touch and the screen and all its elements will have the proper contrast.
Image: CaixaBank
Web pages and online stores do not get rid. In this case, apply the UNE 139803 and WCAG 2.2 standards. The requirements A must meet (there are three levels, for example for public websites they will have to meet the AA level). Some of these requirements include that the page give us alternatives to the text (videos, images and audio), which can be navigated using only the keyboard, that the structure is easy to understand, with expansable texts up to 200%, well -labeled buttons and forms (nothing to ‘click here’, the user has to know where it goes) or that all the images have alternative text to be described to blind users.
Online trade pages such as Amazon must meet the same requirements as web pages, but they must also make the purchase process accessible through a sound and visual notice, for example by adding something to the cart or paying the purchase. Another aspect is that they will have to facilitate details about the accessibility of the products they sell. Amazon already has a section where they detail these requirements to your vendors, but we still do not know what changes will make on their website from the 28th. We have contacted them to learn more details and update when we have an answer.
The hardware still has margin, the websites no. The application of the standard is June 28, but that does not mean that all affected products and services will change that day. In the case of ATMs and the like, those that were installed before that date may continue to be used “until the end of their useful life from the economic point of view, although without exceeding ten years after their commissioning.” There are 47,000 ATMs in Spain and the cost of updating each unit could amount to 3,000 euros. Of course, all who install new ones must comply with the regulations and also the entities must inform their users of which they are updated and which are not.
However, according to Tentpret, this margin would only apply to hardware products that are already on the market, online stores must adapt on the 28th of this month, except for an exception: to be a microenterprise. To be considered microenterprise, it must have less than 10 people on staff, provided that less than 2 million euros per year is billed. Of course, online stores that are launched after June 28 must already meet the requirements.
The magnifying glass of iOS
There is already much advanced. Many companies have already integrated these standards in their products, so on the 28th we will not see a radical change everywhere. For example, in bank, Ing already meets the UNE 139803: 2012 on its website, although they do not mention anything about the ATMs and attention offices. In the case of Caixabank, the entity highlights that its ATMs are accessible (although without detailing whether they comply with the new standard).
In the case of computer equipment or devices such as smartphones or tablets, operating systems such as iOS, Android or Windows have numerous as magnifying glass to expand the content, screen readers, contrast adjustments and size for the text and much more.
Of course there are lags that must take advantage of the new standard if they do not want to face a fine. This is the case of state websites, if we look at the latest report of the Web Accessibility Observatory, the thing did not paint well at the end of 2024. More than half of the websites did not even comply with level A.
Cover image | Pxhere
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