Accessibility

DealIndex aims to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA across the public site. The design system was built around accessibility tokens — high text contrast, visible focus states, semantic HTML, support for prefers-reduced-motion — see the checklist in docs/design-system-v1.md §5.

What works well

• Every interactive element has a visible :focus-visible ring (deal-green at 2 px offset).
• Text contrast meets or exceeds 4.5:1 across body copy and 3:1 across UI chrome.
• Pages render fully without JavaScript — content first, with React islands hydrating only the chat and filters.
• The 90-day price chart on deal pages includes a textual summary above it ("Currently £X, 20% below the 90-day median") so a screen-reader user gets the same key facts.
• Headings nest correctly (H1 → H2 → H3) and reflect the page structure rather than being decorative.
• The whole site keyboard-navigates without traps; the "Skip to content" link sits at the top of the document.

Known gaps

• The price-history chart is currently a visual SVG; we plan to add a downloadable CSV / table view alongside it (Phase 8).
• The on-site chat widget's product cards rely on visible contrast — they're navigable by keyboard but the score pill only conveys quality via colour. We'll add an accessible label in the next pass.

Reporting a barrier

If you hit something that doesn't work for you, we want to know. Email [email protected] with the page URL and a short description. We aim to acknowledge within five working days and fix material barriers within four weeks.

Independent assessment

This statement is a self-assessment. An independent WCAG audit will follow once monthly visitor numbers cross 15,000 (target: Q4 2026).