A11ying with Sanna - I would if I could a guide to web accessibility

The role of the supervisory authority

The Digital Services Act defines who needs to follow the accessibility requirements. The supervisory authority monitors the websites and mobile apps of these operators.

The supervision is carried out every year through comprehensive and simplified monitoring.

Who is the supervisory authority?

The Regional State Administrative Agency monitors digital accessibility. Traficom supervises things that relate to physical world accessibility.

The accessibility supervision is currently being transferred to Traficom. That way the same body supervises all accessibility.

They do more than monitoring

The supervisory authority also provides guidance and advice. We can ask the supervisory authority any questions we have about the requirements.

I have asked for advice on how to interpret things. Based on my experiences I can recommend reaching out to them!

The supervisory authority handles complaints

If a service does not meet the requirements of the Digital Services Act, you can submit a complaint. But, you should always contact the service provider first. The contact details for this should be on the service's accessibility statement.

Consider submitting a complaint if:

  • you don't receive a reply from the service provider within two weeks or
  • if you don't receive content in a format that suits you despite requests.

You can find information about users' rights and about how to make a complaint from their website.

The supervisory authority has the last word

Unfortunately, some of the WCAG requirements are very open to interpretation. As a result, different people might make different interpretations in different situations. The supervisory authority has the last word in situations with different interpretations.

Help spread the word

Remember that differences in interpretations don't mean that someone has done anything wrong. If you can, help spread the knowledge about the supervisory authority's decisions. All accessibility experts would be happy to get this information. Accessibility experts can then spread the word in their circles.

Source material

The Regional State Administrative Agency's website on accessibility requirements