AccessiBe Sued: Class Action Lawsuit Says Widget Seller Made False Claims
On June 26, 2024 the number 1 accessibility overlay widget seller in the world, AccessiBe, was sued in a complaint alleging AccessiBe made an array of misleading and false representations.
The lawsuit generally alleges that the business manager for the plaintiff, a dermatology practice, purchased AccessiBe’s widget based on representations that the widget would automatically make a website ADA compliant. The business manager was also attracted to AccessiBe because of the promise of legal support in the “unlikely” event the business was sued despite using Accessibe’s overlay widget.
Paragraph 55 of the complaint reads:
After installing the Accessibe accessWidget on its website, Plaintiff again ran Accessibe’s website scan via the Accessibe site, which deemed Plaintiff’s website, www.tribecaskincenter.com, “Compliant.”
Paragraph 56 continues:
Over the next year, Plaintiff received periodic audit reports from Accessibe stating that its website was fully ADA complaint.
In January 2024, the plaintiff was sued over website accessibility.
Paragraph 60 reads:
Plaintiff contacted Accessibe within days, provided it with a copy of the complaint, and asked for the promised legal support. The “support” received consisted of another Accessibe audit report stating that its website conformed to WCAG level AA and was fully ADA compliant and a naked statement that the claims against Plaintiff were invalid. Accessibe then referred Plaintiff to an outside attorney who quoted a cost of over $10,000 to defend against the lawsuit.
Paragraph 62 states:
Plaintiff retained a legitimate website remediation firm. An audit of Plaintiff’s website that Accessibe’s automated audit claimed to conform to WCAG Level AA identified dozens of issues of non-conformance.
Setting aside the litigation support package part, AccessiBe’s best defense here is a simple one:
Just prove your widget does what you say it does.
The attorneys for the plaintiff are:
- Urist Law Offices, PLLC: Joshua Urist
- Stein & Nieporent LLP: David Stein and David Nieporent
- Law Offices of Ari Brown, PLLC: Ari Brown
- Heenan & Cook: John Heenan
The case, titled, Sherwin K. Parikh MD, P.C. d/b/a Tribeca Skin Center vs. AccessiBe, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
