Nearly a third of UK customers with disabilities continue to face barriers accessing basic products and services, confirmed new survey findings that highlight a significant missed economic opportunity for businesses.
More than a decade after disability rights campaigners first warned of a “silent crisis” in customer inclusion, new research suggests little has changed for millions of disabled consumers across the UK. An Opinium poll of 1,073 disabled adults, published by the Business Disability Forum (BDF), exposes persistent barriers that make everyday shopping, travelling and accessing services “unnecessarily hard” for disabled people.
The figures are stark. Over a third (37%) of respondents said their consumer experience would improve if staff had a better understanding of disability and how it affects their needs. Nearly one-third (30%) said simply buying products and services that meet their needs is more difficult than it is for non-disabled people. One in five (22%) said they struggle to access good customer service at all.
BUSINESSES IGNORING SIGNIFICANT FINANCIAL OPPORTUNITY
BDF’s CEO Diane Lightfoot said the findings show that businesses who fail to prioritise accessibility are not only excluding customers – they are also turning their backs on a significant financial opportunity.
“With one in four people in the UK having a disability, it is in every organisation’s interest to make disabled customers feel welcomed by offering the adjustments they need,” Lightfoot said. “Accessibility isn’t just about compliance – it’s a reputational advantage. Inclusive brands are seen as ethical and socially responsible, which strengthens customer loyalty.”
She added that even well-designed products lose value if consumers cannot find or understand accessibility information: “A product may be brilliantly accessible – but if you don’t tell your customers that, they won’t buy it.”
IMPROVING CUSTOMER ACCESSIBILITY
Participants in the research pointed to four key improvements that would transform their experience:
- Better understanding of disability: 37% want staff to have more awareness and training.
- Easier access to help: 29% want quicker, simpler access to assistance when shopping or using services.
- Accessible customer services: 21% want multiple, inclusive ways of getting support – beyond phone lines that often fail accessibility checks.
- Inclusive design: 19% want products and services designed with disabled users in mind from the outset, not retrofitted after complaints.
The findings echo long-standing calls from disability advocates for organisations to move beyond minimum legal compliance and adopt a proactive, user-centred approach to accessibility.
DISABILITY SMART IMPACT AWARDS
Understanding what an inclusive approach to customer experience looks like in practice can be difficult. Each year, BDF’s Disability Smart Impact Awards highlight organisations making measurable progress. This year’s winners included:
- Alexandra Park and Palace, recognised for transforming its Grade II-listed Victorian site into an accessibility-first venue for all visitors.
- Unilever, awarded for using scanning technology and distance-readable QR codes that allow packaging information to be voiced aloud – a breakthrough for blind and visually impaired consumers.
But BDF highlights that these examples are far from universal. For many disabled customers, inconsistent experiences between providers remain the norm.
INCLUSIVE DESIGN
Disability campaigners say the research reflects a deeper cultural problem: disabled people still aren’t meaningfully involved in shaping the products and services they use. “Inclusive design shouldn’t be a niche add-on,” said Lightfoot. “It should be a fundamental part of how businesses think, plan and communicate.”
The 2026 Disability Smart Impact Awards are now open for entry, and the BDF hopes this year’s report will push more companies to take inclusion seriously – not as a PR exercise, but as an essential part of how they operate. For disabled consumers who continue to battle everyday barriers, that change can’t come soon enough. Click here to find out more.
RELATED ARTICLES
Businesses missing out on over £13 trillion in disability spending power.
How organisations are continuing to go the extra mile on disability inclusion, and why the business case for doing so remains as strong as ever.
BDF warns employers against sidelining disability inclusion as economic pressures, political headwinds and the rapid advance of AI create new risks of exclusion for millions of workers and consumers.
As more organisations tout their commitments to diversity, some face accusations of “purple washing” as they are publicly claiming to support disability inclusion without putting in the real work.
Sign up for our newsletter
