These cases that are becoming so incredibly prevalent will get worse. If you have an e-commerce business or website, chances are you will go through the same thing and get sued at some point. Some loopholes and attorneys would rather come after you and make a quick buck than be noble and honorable.
Getting sued despite best efforts
Pete & Pedro’s website is being sued for not being conducive for Darnell Williams’s visual impairment. I thought our website was compliant because we pay about $5,000 annually for a service to ensure accessibility. With the service, your website can be consistent with the needs of its users, including those with visual impairment and the blind.
Sure, sometimes websites aren’t compatible. The code is complex, and websites, being an e-commerce business, are constantly changing. Every time a new picture, product, or web page is added, there’s so much nuance. Being compliant in every aspect in every area with no issues is impossible. Attorneys know this.
These lawsuits will push to settle quickly because they don’t want litigation. They want to scare you into a quick settlement. They know you’ll have to hire an attorney to defend yourself, which can be scary for small business owners. It can also get expensive.
So, how did I get served when I had a service that made the website accessible? The service says a website will never be 100% compliant on every page because it’s impossible. However, there are things that you can do to mitigate this, and in good faith.
Legalized extortion
These lawsuits are legalized extortion. The plaintiff is claiming that he suffered emotional distress and embarrassment. I go over the details in the video. Namely, he claims the links were too long, which was a problem for his software. He also said a heading failed to describe the section of the content. He’s saying the categories and headings in the navigation bar weren’t descriptive enough. He’s claiming he suffered interference with daily activities and emotional distress, including emotional and mental anguish, loss of sleep, violation of privacy, humiliation, stress, anger, frustration, shock, embarrassment, and anxiety.
95% of companies settle as quickly and quietly as possible. If someone were trying to exploit a loophole and take advantage of your business, would you roll over and take it, or would you fight it? To me, it’s disgusting, and I’m going to fight. I’m going to stand up for myself and other hard-working people who do their best every single day to try to make their lives, their customers’ lives and those lives around them better.
It’s frustrating when you’ve done everything to prepare for the situation, and it doesn’t matter. Loopholes are being exploited, and it’s scary. I don’t know how much it will cost, but I know I’m unwilling to roll over. Let me know what you would do in the comments.
