In our last blog post about website accessibility, the Department of Justice was preparing legislation for 2018 to create online accessibility standards. This would ensure websites can be accessed by those who are deaf or visually disabled as part of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

That 2018 deadline has been pushed back, so official website accessibility standards will not become law for a while. However, that doesn’t mean you should delay making sure your site is accessible to all users.

As a reminder, the four website accessibility guidelines the DOJ will eventually use to create their laws say that content must be perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. Kasasa has partnered with AudioEye to provide FIRSTBranch users with a full-featured consumer experience and comply with these Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

What FIRSTBranch users need to know

Although the latest guidelines have not been signed into law yet, there has been an influx of lawsuits brought against community banks and credit unions for not having accessible sites.

Many law firms use tools to check a website’s ADA compliance. However several of the ADA compliance checking tools, like this one, don’t utilize AudioEye when they check the site, so a site in compliance can appear out of compliance. We’ve heard that many AudioEye clients are still receiving letters of noncompliance because of this.

If you are a FIRSTBranch client and do not have AudioEye, know that we cannot integrate AudioEye on your site without your permission and cooperation. Please contact your primary Kasasa representative as soon as possible to get AudioEye on your site.

What to do if you receive a letter about noncompliance

If you’re a FIRSTBranch client with AudioEye who has received a letter threatening legal action, our team, in conjunction with AudioEye, will help you craft your response. Check out this PDF for a step-by-step guide on how to start that process.