Contract Language

Once a product and vendor have been selected, the contract will incorporate the various accessibility specifications, including how delivery will be tested and confirmed, and how non-conformance will be addressed. The following is a checklist of things to consider when finalizing contract details:  

  • State the applicable accessibility standard (e.g., WCAG 2.1 Level AA).
  • Define the process for handling exceptions to standards and specifications.
  • Agree on deployment and support procedures, making sure that the vendor’s dedicated support team covers accessibility.
  • Include all relevant information on testing and delivery.
  • Include that the vendor is responsible if the product turns out not to be accessible by requiring the vendor to remediate barriers, deliver a new product, return money paid, or pay damages.
  • Include provision for soliciting feedback from both vendors and users.
  • As accessibility challenges may not be readily apparent, specify the vendor’s responsibility to remediate a barrier whenever it is identified.

For additional information, you can visit the Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs (G3ICT) resource 9 Steps to Procuring Accessible ICTs for Inclusive Education

Section508.gov (the US accessibility legislation resource) has developed sample contract language for various situations:

  • Custom ICT development services
  • Installation, configuration and integration services
  • Maintenance, upgrades and replacements
  • Service personnel
  • Hosting services
  • Validation for ICT items
  • Documentation
  • Conformance reporting
  • Non-compliance 

This language will need to be adapted to refer to the specific accessibility standards of your college or university, instead of the Section 508 requirements.

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eCampusOntario's Digital Accessibility Toolkit Copyright © by eCampus Ontario is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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