The EU Accessibility Act (EAA) is a new Directive that aims to improve the accessibility of products and services for persons with disabilities. It covers a wide range of sectors, including e-commerce, electronic communications, and consumer banking services. The Act needs to be transposed into national law. Those national laws will become applicable as of June 28, 2025, and will have significant implications for banks.
In this blog post, we will explain the main features of the EEA, its impact on banks, and how PwC can help banks comply with the new requirements.
What is the EU Accessibility Act and why is it important?
The EU Accessibility Act is a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council that harmonises the accessibility requirements for products and services across the EU. The Act is also aligned with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD), which the EU and its Member States have ratified and are bound by.
The EAA is important for several reasons. First, it responds to the high and growing demand for accessible products and services in the EU, considering the projected increase in persons with disabilities and the ageing population. Second, it eliminates and prevents barriers to the free movement of accessible products and services due to divergent national regulations. Third, it increases the availability and affordability of accessible products and services and improves accessibility information for consumers.
Which services are in scope?
The EAA applies to certain products and services that are provided after June 28, 2025, and that are within the scope of the Act. The Act defines "persons with disabilities" as persons who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.
It specifies functional accessibility requirements and performance criteria for products and services, based on the principles of perceivability, operability, understandability, and robustness. In the area of banking, amongst other the following consumer banking services are included:
- Credit agreements
- Reception and transmission of orders in relation to one or more financial instruments
- Execution of orders on behalf of clients
- Portfolio management
- Investment advice
- Safekeeping and administration of financial instruments for the account of clients, including custodianship and related services such as cash/collateral management and excluding maintaining securities accounts at the top tier level
- Granting credits or loans to an investor to allow him to carry out a transaction in one or more financial instruments, where the firm granting the credit or loan is involved in the transaction
- Foreign exchange services where these are connected to the provision of investment services
- Investment research and financial analysis or other forms of general recommendation relating to transactions in financial instruments
- Payment services and services linked to the payment account
- Electronic Money
By when will the new rules apply?
In essence, the national implementation laws will enter into force on June 28, 2025. Services and service contracts that have been concluded prior to that date can continue unchanged. Self-service terminals used before June 28, 2025 may not be used for longer than 20 years after they were put into service, but no longer than until June 28, 2040.
How will the banking sector be impacted?
In essence, banks providing in scope “consumer banking services” will mainly be impact in two major areas:
- Complete review and redesign of the online presence: Websites and services offered on mobile devices must be designed to be perceivable, operable, understandable and robust in a coherent and appropriate manner. This also includes the redesign of the online banking solution.
- “Simple language”: Information must be comprehensible, must not exceed language level B2. This means banks need to review and adjust their client contracts and information provided to clients as part of the banking service.
Considering the numerous digital channels and documents in place when providing banking services, this will be a significant undertaking for many banks.
How can PwC support?
As PwC, we can support you in many different areas, for example:
- Comprehensive analysis of products, services, websites and apps for accessibility standards
- Development of comprehensive catalogs of measures for the adaptation of processes, products and services in accordance with accessibility standards
- Close cooperation with the bank for the implementation of identified accessibility measures
Please get in contact with our experts for more information.
