Website Accessibility Lawsuit Statistics 2026: Complete Data

Web accessibility lawsuits continue to accelerate in 2026. With the ADA Title II deadline approaching and plaintiff firms scaling their operations, no industry is safe. Here's the complete data.

Executive Summary

5,000+

ADA lawsuits filed (2025)

400%

increase since 2018

$75K+

avg. settlement cost

30%

involved overlay widgets

94.8%

of sites still fail WCAG

days to Title II deadline

Filing Trends: Year Over Year

Web accessibility lawsuits have grown consistently since 2017, when landmark cases against Domino's Pizza and Winn-Dixie established clear precedent. The trajectory shows no sign of slowing:

Year

Federal Lawsuits

State Lawsuits (est.)

YoY Change

2018

2,258

~500

—

2019

2,256

~800

Flat

2020

3,550

~1,200

+57%

2021

4,011

~1,500

+13%

2022

3,255

~1,800

-19%

2023

4,605

~2,200

+41%

2024

4,800+

~2,500

+4%

2025

5,000+

~3,000

+4%

Industries Most Targeted

Plaintiff firms target industries with high public-facing digital presence and deep pockets. E-commerce remains the #1 target, but healthcare and education are seeing rapid growth due to sector-specific regulations.

E-commerce & Retail

35%Stable

High volume of public-facing pages, clear purchase barriers

Food & Hospitality

18%Growing

Restaurant ordering, hotel booking, delivery apps

Healthcare

12%Rapid growth

Patient portals, telehealth, HIPAA + ADA intersection

Banking & Finance

10%Growing

Online banking, loan applications, investment platforms

Education

8%Rapid growth

Title II deadline driving government/university cases

Entertainment & Media

7%Stable

Streaming, ticketing, content platforms

Travel & Transportation

5%Growing

Booking systems, airline websites, transit apps

Government

5%Exploding

Title II deadline creating new wave of enforcement

The Overlay Problem: $1M Fine and Rising Risk

One of the most significant developments in 2025 was the $1 million fine levied against a major accessibility overlay provider for deceptive compliance claims. This validated what accessibility experts have warned about for years: overlays create a false sense of compliance while failing to address underlying issues.

Overlay Lawsuit Data Points

⚠️30% of 2023 ADA lawsuits involved websites using accessibility overlays
⚠️Sites with overlays are sued at a HIGHER rate than sites without them
⚠️No court has ever accepted an overlay as evidence of ADA compliance
⚠️Overlay provider fined $1M for deceptive 'full compliance' marketing claims
⚠️National Federation of the Blind has issued formal statements against overlays
⚠️Multiple law firms now specifically target overlay-using sites as 'low-hanging fruit'

Settlement Costs by Company Size

Settlement costs vary significantly based on organization size, the number of violations found, and whether the defendant demonstrates good faith remediation efforts.

Organization Size

Settlement Range

+ Legal Fees

Total Exposure

Small Business (<50 employees)

$5K–$25K

$10K–$30K

$15K–$55K

Mid-Market (50–500)

$25K–$100K

$30K–$75K

$55K–$175K

Enterprise (500–5,000)

$75K–$300K

$50K–$150K

$125K–$450K

Large Enterprise (5,000+)

$200K–$1M+

$100K–$500K

$300K–$1.5M+

Government Entity

$50K–$500K

$75K–$200K

$125K–$700K

Most Common WCAG Violations Cited in Lawsuits

Certain WCAG violations appear in nearly every accessibility complaint. Fixing these eight criteria eliminates the vast majority of lawsuit risk:

#11.4.3Contrast (Minimum)81% of sites

#21.1.1Non-text Content (Alt Text)58% of sites

#34.1.2Name, Role, Value (Forms)46% of sites

#42.4.4Link Purpose (In Context)46% of sites

#51.3.1Info and Relationships25% of sites

#62.1.1Keyboard Accessibility20% of sites

#73.1.1Language of Page17% of sites

#82.4.2Page Titled12% of sites

Notable Cases and Precedents

Robles v. Domino's Pizza (2019)

Supreme Court declined to hear appeal — ADA applies to websites

Established that websites of businesses with physical locations must be accessible

Gil v. Winn-Dixie (2021)

11th Circuit reversed, but on narrow procedural grounds

Did NOT overturn the principle that websites can violate ADA — just limited injunctive relief

DOJ v. Rite Aid (2023)

Consent decree requiring full WCAG 2.1 AA compliance + ongoing monitoring

DOJ actively enforcing against private companies, not just government entities

DOJ ADA Title II Final Rule (2024)

First-ever federal web accessibility standard for government

April 2026/2027 deadlines — no more ambiguity about what 'accessible' means for government

Overlay Provider $1M Fine (2025)

FTC action for deceptive 'ADA compliance' marketing claims

Overlay tools cannot claim to make sites compliant — must do real remediation

What the Data Says: Prevention vs. Litigation

The math is clear: proactive accessibility investment costs a fraction of litigation.

Prevention Cost

Automated scanning: $29–$99/mo
Initial audit: $2,000–$10,000
Remediation: $5,000–$25,000
Ongoing monitoring: $500–$2,000/mo
Year 1 total: $10,000–$50,000

Litigation Cost

Legal defense: $30,000–$150,000
Settlement: $75,000–$300,000
Consent decree monitoring: $25,000/yr
Emergency remediation: $50,000–$100,000
Year 1 total: $180,000–$575,000

2026 Predictions

Based on current trends, legal expert analysis, and the approaching Title II deadline:

Government lawsuits will surge — Expect a wave of enforcement actions against state/local government websites that miss the April 24 deadline
Overlay lawsuits will increase — Following the $1M fine, plaintiff firms are specifically targeting overlay-reliant sites
Healthcare will become #2 — HHS Section 504 enforcement plus ADA creates dual legal exposure
Serial filers will expand — Top plaintiff firms filed 500+ cases each in 2025; expect them to scale further
Mobile app lawsuits will grow — Title II explicitly covers mobile apps; this opens a new attack surface

Know Your Risk. Fix It Before They Sue.

Run a free accessibility scan to see how your website measures up against WCAG 2.1 AA — the standard courts and the DOJ use to evaluate compliance.

Free Accessibility Scan →