Accessibility overlays vs real code fixes

An accessibility overlay, often called a widget, is a script you add to your store. It usually shows a toolbar icon that lets visitors change font size, contrast or spacing, and some versions try to repair problems automatically while the page loads.

They are popular because they install in minutes. The catch is that they sit on top of your theme. Your store’s code, the thing screen readers, keyboards and browsers actually read, stays the same.

Most barriers that stop disabled shoppers from buying live in the theme code. A script guessing at runtime can’t reliably fix them:

• Buttons and links with no name, like an icon-only cart or search button that a screen reader announces as just “button”.
• Menus, filters and variant pickers that can’t be opened or used with a keyboard.
• Cart drawers and pop-ups that trap keyboard focus, or don’t move focus to the dialog at all.
• Product images without meaningful alt text. Software can’t know what matters about your product.
• Form fields and errors in search, sign-up and checkout that aren’t labelled or announced.

Many disabled people also already use their own tools, such as screen readers, magnifiers and browser settings. A toolbar adds a second set of controls that can conflict with them. More than 1,000 accessibility professionals have signed the Overlay Fact Sheet, which says overlays “are not an effective means of ensuring accessibility”.

In April 2025 the US Federal Trade Commission approved a final order requiring accessiBe, one of the best-known overlay companies, to pay $1 million. The FTC said the company’s claims that its AI tool could make any website compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) were not supported.

The order bars the company from claiming its automated products can make a website WCAG-compliant, or keep it compliant, without evidence. It also covers how third-party reviews were presented. You can read the details in the FTC’s press release.

UsableNet tracks digital accessibility lawsuits in the US every year. Its 2025 year-end report found that widgets did not slow litigation in 2025, and that they typically don’t resolve the underlying code-level issues. E-commerce is one of the most-sued sectors.

In other words, a widget doesn’t take a store out of the target group. The issues a plaintiff’s tester finds are usually still in the code.

To be clear: no provider, including us, can promise you won’t be sued. What reduces risk is fixing real barriers, keeping a record of what you fixed, and checking regularly.

• Where the fix lives: an overlay changes the page in the visitor’s browser; a code fix changes your theme, so every browser and tool gets it.
• Testing: overlays are automatic; a proper fix is tested by a person with a keyboard and screen readers.
• If you stop paying: an overlay disappears with your subscription; code fixes stay in your store.
• Proof: a code fix comes with a before-and-after scan and a list of what changed.
• Speed: an overlay is another third-party script on every page; a code fix adds nothing.

1. Scan your store with the widget still installed. Our free scan shows which issues remain and flags common overlay scripts.
2. Fix the issues in your theme, starting with navigation, product pages, the cart and checkout.
3. Test by hand with a keyboard and a screen reader, not only with an automated tool.
4. Then decide about the widget. Once the code is fixed, most stores remove it to avoid conflicts with shoppers’ own tools and save the subscription.
5. Keep checking. New apps and theme updates bring new issues, so re-scan regularly.

• US Federal Trade Commission, “FTC Approves Final Order Requiring accessiBe to Pay $1 Million”, April 2025.
• UsableNet, 2025 Year-End Report on Web Accessibility Lawsuits.
• Overlay Fact Sheet, signed by accessibility practitioners and disabled users.