Accessibility audit after an ADA demand letter

Details

Before anything else: talk to a lawyer

I'm an accessibility auditor, not a lawyer, and I don't give legal advice. A demand letter has legal deadlines and consequences, so your first call should be to an attorney who handles ADA website cases. Ask them before you change the website, and keep a dated record of how the site looks today. My first 7 days guide lists the other early steps.

What I do

• Check the barriers named in the letter to see whether they exist on your site, and how severe they are.
• Find barriers the letter doesn't mention, because a letter usually lists only a few of the issues.
• Rank everything by how much it blocks a customer, so your developers fix the worst first.
• Write code-level fixes your developers can use, then retest after they're done.

What your lawyer and developers get

• A dated, written record of what was tested, with which tools and assistive technologies, and what was found
• Every issue with its page, a screenshot, the WCAG criterion it breaks and a severity rating
• A retest report showing which issues were fixed

Whether the report helps your legal position is a question for your lawyer. I can't promise any outcome, and an audit doesn't stop you receiving a claim.

Which standard I test against

Demand letters usually cite WCAG 2.1 Level AA. I test against WCAG 2.2 Level AA, which includes the 2.1 AA requirements apart from one criterion that 2.2 removed (Parsing). If your letter cites 2.1, tell me and I'll check that criterion too.

Timing and cost

Standard turnaround is 5 to 7 business days. If you have a response deadline, tell me when you book and I'll confirm what's possible. A small business audit is $499 for 5 to 8 key pages with a free retest, and stores and larger sites get a fixed quote within 24 hours. See what an audit costs and what claims typically cost.

What not to rely on

An accessibility widget or overlay won't fix the code, and about 20% of the companies sued in the first half of 2026 already had one installed. Read why widgets don't protect you.

Your agreed audit scope

The quote lists the representative pages or screens, complete user journeys, browsers, assistive technologies and standard versions to be evaluated. The $499 small business package covers 5 to 8 agreed key pages. Extra templates, documents, apps or journeys are quoted separately. Findings describe the tested scope and point in time; they are not a guarantee about every page of a website or a legal conclusion.

One retest of the original findings is included when requested within 60 days of receiving the report. Your developers implement the fixes; new features or pages require a separate scope.

See the first steps after a demand letter and technical audit deliverables for attorneys.

Who does the work

I'm Rohit Yadav, a DHS Trusted Tester (Section 508) and accessibility auditor with about five years of hands-on testing. Every audit is done by me, by hand, with a keyboard and NVDA, JAWS and VoiceOver, against WCAG 2.2 AA. About me · See a sample report

Common questions

Does an accessibility audit protect me from a lawsuit?

No. An audit tells you what is wrong and what to fix. It can't guarantee you won't receive a claim, and I don't give legal advice.

Should I fix my website before I reply to the letter?

Ask your lawyer first. They may want you to record the current state of the site before it changes.

How fast can you start?

Tell me your deadline when you book. Standard turnaround is 5 to 7 business days, and I'll confirm what's possible for your date.

Do you work with my lawyer?

Yes. I can send the report to your lawyer as well as your developers. I don't act as a legal representative.

What if the letter cites WCAG 2.1 and you test 2.2?

WCAG 2.2 AA includes the 2.1 AA requirements apart from Parsing, which 2.2 removed. I'll check that one too if your letter cites 2.1.