Only 6 per cent of Belgian websites accessible for people with disabilities

More than 94 per cent of Belgian websites do not comply with mandatory accessibility rules for people with disabilities, according to the first European Digital Trust Index by Belgian digital consultancy Craftzing. It tested the accessibility of more than 260,000 websites from 18 European countries, including 7,408 in Belgium.

From 28 June 2025, the European Accessibility Act (EAA) will require essential services and products from European companies and organisations to meet a set of minimum criteria to make them accessible to all. According to Eurostat, one in four adults in Europe has a disability.

Craftzing tested the homepages of European websites against the criteria imposed by the EAA. 94.2 per cent of the 7,408 Belgian homepages tested did not meet the EEA standards. People with visual impairments have particular problems.

Visual impairments

"The most common problem is that 71 per cent of websites do not correctly adjust the colour contrast between text and background. This makes it difficult for people with colour blindness, for example, to read information on the website," Craftzing said.

"In addition, many websites lack descriptions for links (63 per cent of sites), images (33 per cent) and buttons (18 per cent). These descriptions help visually impaired people navigate a website and better understand content through speech and reading technologies."

Belgium ranks seventh out of the 18 countries surveyed. Hungary has the worst score with 96.3 per cent, while Norway has the best score with 87.7 per cent.

^{© BELGA PHOTO STEPHAN ENGLER}