Explain to me in simple terms the European Accessibility Act and its impact for designers

The European Accessibility Act (EAA) requires many products and services to meet accessibility standards so people with disabilities can access them. For designers, QA and testing must confirm those requirements are met. Focus on three practical testing areas: 1. Integrate WCAG checks - Use WCAG 2.1 (AA) as the baseline: check for perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust criteria (contrast, text alternatives, headings, form labels, error identification, etc.). - Automate what you can: run tools like axe, Lighthouse, or pa11y in CI to catch common issues early (missing alt text, color contrast, ARIA misuse). Automation finds many but not all problems. - Add manual WCAG checklists to cover context-dependent rules (meaningful link text, reading order, time limits, error prevention). Reference: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (W3C). 2. Keyboard tests - Verify full keyboard operability: every interactive control (links, buttons, form fields, menus, dialogs, custom widgets) must be reachable, operable, and visible via Tab, Shift+Tab, Enter/Space, Arrow keys, and Esc as applicable. - Ensure focus indicators are clear and logical focus order matches visual order. Test keyboard-only workflows (login, navigation, form submission, modal dialogs). - Include automated keyboard smoke tests when possible (scripts that tab through pages) but rely mainly on manual sessions to catch focus traps and ordering issues. 3. Screen‑reader testing - Test with at least one popular screen reader (NVDA or JAWS on Windows; VoiceOver on macOS/iOS) and a browser combo representative of your users. - Check semantic structure (headings, lists), ARIA roles/states only when needed, correct labeling of form fields, announcements for dynamic updates, and logical reading order. - Record common user tasks (navigate to content, complete a form, use widgets) and confirm the experience is understandable and efficient. Avoid over-reliance on automated ARIA validators — actual screen-readers reveal real-world issues. Practical workflow suggestions - Add accessibility checks early: design handoff should include accessible components and specs. - Include automated WCAG scanning in CI to prevent regressions. - Schedule regular manual keyboard and screen-reader tests as part of release QA (ideally by someone experienced with assistive tech). - Log issues with clear reproduction steps and assistive-technology context so developers can fix them. Why this matters The EAA raises legal and market expectations for accessible products. Combining automated WCAG checks with thorough manual keyboard and screen-reader testing helps designers deliver compliant, usable experiences for people with disabilities and reduces legal and remediation costs. Key references - European Accessibility Act (official texts via EU portals) - W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1) - Deque axe, Lighthouse, pa11y (popular accessibility tools)