A Disabled Market: Free Movement of Goods and Services in the EU and Disability Accessibility

• Author: Lisa Waddington
• Published date: 01 September 2009
• Date: 01 September 2009
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0386.2009.00470.x

eulj_470575..598

A Disabled Market: Free Movement of

Goods and Services in the EU and

Disability Accessibility

Lisa Waddington*

Abstract: Individuals with a disability who wish to use goods and services can have a

variety of specif‌ic needs, ranging from accessible written information to standard products

and services which have disability accessibility features built into them. In light thereof,

this article focuses on the impact which Community law has had, and could potentially

have, on ensuring an EU-wide market in products and services which are accessible to

consumers with a disability. The article examines the (possible) impact of a variety of

provisions, including the rules relating to the free movement of goods and services

(Articles 28 and 49 EC, respectively), the internal market (Articles 94 and 95 EC),

non-discrimination (Article 13 EC), EU citizenship provisions, and the work of the

European standardisation bodies such as CEN. The central question throughout the

article is does EC law allow for, or discourage, the establishment of mandatory disability

accessibility standards at the national or EU level, and have the provisions been used to

permit or establish such standards to date?

Introduction

The European Community has progressively and successfully worked towards the

establishment of ‘an internal market characterised by the abolition, as between

Member States, of obstacles to the free movement of goods, persons, services and

capital’.1The internal market should serve to promote economic development and,

amongst others, ‘the raising of the standard of living and quality of life’.2In order to

establish the internal market, the European Community has a number of (legal) tools

at its disposal. In the context of free movement of goods, Article 28 EC prohibits

quantitative restrictions and national ‘measures having equivalent effect’ thereto,

whilst Article 49 EC prohibits restrictions on freedom to provide services, and operates

* European Disability Forum Chair on European Disability Law, Maastricht University, the Netherlands.

I am grateful to Professor Stefaan van der Bogaert of Leiden University (formerly of Maastricht Uni-

versity), Javier Güemes, formerly of the European Disability Forum, and two anonymous reviewers for

commenting on an earlier version of this article.

1Article 3(1)(c) EC.

2Article 2 EC.

European Law Journal, Vol. 15, No. 5, September 2009, pp. 575–598.

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in a similar manner to Article 28 EC.3Meanwhile, Articles 94 and 95 EC allow the

Community to establish harmonised standards to secure the free movement of goods

and services in an internal market. Moreover, other provisions of the Treaty, such as

those relating to EU citizenship and even Article 13 EC, which provides the competence

to combat discrimination against individuals on a variety of grounds, arguably can be

of relevance in establishing the internal market. Lastly, the work of the European

standardisation bodies, such as CEN and Cenelec, make an important contribution to

establishing de facto harmonised European standards for products which, once com-

plied with, give full access to the internal market. In sum, the combination of these

negative and positive approaches to harmonisation has all but removed barriers to the

trade of goods and services within the EU.

The question examined in this article is what impact these measures have had, and

could potentially have, on ensuring an EU-wide market in products and services which

are accessible to disabled consumers, thereby contributing to an improved quality of

life for such individuals and their families. Disabled individuals can have a variety of

specif‌ic needs, ranging from accessible (written) information, which can itself take a

variety of forms, to standard products which have disability accessibility features built

into them. In the absence of such accessibility features, many disabled people will f‌ind

goods and services which are in free circulation in the internal market to be impractical

or even unsafe to use. The question therefore is, do the myriad of (legal) provisions4

relating to the internal market which the Community has at its disposal allow for, or

discourage, the establishment of mandatory accessibility standards, and have they been

used to permit or establish such standards to date?

Disability Accessibility and Goods and Services

The group of disabled people is highly diverse, as are the kind of accessibility needs

they have in the context of access to goods and services. Accessing information is a

key factor and people with visual, hearing and intellectual impairments often require

that information be provided in alternative formats.5This may be, respectively,

Braille, large print and audio information; sign language and text-based information;

and easy to read text and symbols. People with mobility diff‌iculties, including people

who use wheelchairs but also, on occasions, people with visual or hearing impair-

ments, have specif‌ic access needs with regard to buildings where services are pro-

vided, and transport facilities, as well as requiring a means of identifying accessible

premises and facilities in advance. Issues relating to disability accessibility also arise

in a number of other areas including electronic commerce,6digital broadcasting and

3In addition, Directive 2006/123/EC on services in the internal market, [2006] OJ L376/36, is also designed

to achieve the free movement of services.

4Including the possibility to request the European standardisation bodies to develop harmonised technical

standards.

5Note, eg, Recital 13 of Regulation 1107/2006 of 5 July 2006 concerning the rights of disabled persons and

persons with reduced mobility when travelling by air, [2006] OJ L204/1 (discussed below), which provides:

‘All essential information provided to air passengers should be provided in alternative formats accessible

to disabled persons...’.

6This embraces many elements such as online banking and the purchase of goods or services over the

internet.

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