This story first broke on July 10, 2026.
Small businesses have become the top target for website accessibility lawsuits, not because their sites got worse, but because the easier targets already got sued.
Law Firms Moved On to Businesses With No Accessibility Record
Plaintiff law firms spent years suing large companies over inaccessible websites. Most of those companies have since fixed their sites or settled, which means there are fewer easy targets left in that pool. Small businesses, many of whom have never had their site checked for accessibility at all, are now the more attractive target, and firms are using free automated scanning tools to find them and generate demand letters.
These demand letters aren’t small. Settlements commonly run from $10,000 to $25,000, even for a business that never intended to exclude anyone and had no idea their site had an issue.
What to Check
- If your site has never been checked for basic accessibility (alt text on images, keyboard navigation, readable color contrast), that’s worth doing before a scan finds it for you.
- A demand letter often arrives before any warning or chance to fix the issue. There’s currently no requirement in most states that gives you notice first.
- California is currently debating a bill that would require a warning before a lawsuit can be filed, but as of now, the rules vary by state and most offer no grace period at all.
An accessibility check is a small task compared to the cost of a settlement. Having your site reviewed is worth doing before it becomes someone else’s discovery, not yours.
Source: Accessible.org