Scanning vs Remediation: Why Detection Isn't Enough

Accessibility scanning identifies WCAG violations while remediation actually fixes them. The gap between these activities explains why 94.8% of websites fail accessibility despite widespread scanning tool availability. Scanning documents liability; remediation eliminates it. <1% of TestParty customers have been sued because the platform combines comprehensive scanning (Spotlight AI with 99% accuracy) with expert source code remediation in a unified workflow.

Finding problems isn't solving them.

The Detection Delusion

Why organizations overvalue scanning.

Scanning Tools Proliferate

Accessibility scanning tools are everywhere. Free browser extensions like axe DevTools and WAVE. Enterprise platforms like Siteimprove and Deque. Automated CI/CD checkers. AI-powered analyzers.

Organizations install these tools and feel progress. Dashboards show metrics. Reports document findings. Teams discuss results.

Yet WebAIM's Million report shows 94.8% of home pages have detectable WCAG failures. Scanning isn't translating into accessibility.

The Activity Trap

Scanning feels like action. Running scans, reviewing results, tracking metrics—these activities consume time and resources. Teams report on scanning frequency and finding trends.

But scanning is observation, not intervention. It's measuring the problem, not solving it.

The Documentation Problem

Scanning produces documentation of accessibility failures. This documentation can actually increase legal risk—it demonstrates knowledge of violations without demonstrating action to address them.

When plaintiff attorneys file ADA lawsuits, they test with screen readers and find the same issues your scans documented. The scans prove you knew. The lawsuits prove you didn't fix.

The Evidence: Scanning Doesn't Work

Data showing detection alone fails.

WebAIM Million Analysis

The WebAIM Million tests one million home pages annually. Despite years of scanning tool availability, violations persist.

+------------+------------------------------+
|    Year    |   Sites with WCAG Failures   |
+------------+------------------------------+
|    2020    |            98.1%             |
+------------+------------------------------+
|    2021    |            97.4%             |
+------------+------------------------------+
|    2022    |            96.8%             |
+------------+------------------------------+
|    2023    |            96.3%             |
+------------+------------------------------+
|    2024    |            95.9%             |
+------------+------------------------------+
|    2025    |            94.8%             |
+------------+------------------------------+

Improvement is glacial. Scanning tools haven't solved the problem.

The Implementation Gap

Why doesn't scanning translate to compliance? The implementation gap.

+------------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
|            Factor            |                    Impact                   |
+------------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
|     Developer bandwidth      |     Accessibility competes with features    |
+------------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
|    Expertise requirement     |     Teams lack accessibility specialists    |
+------------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
|   Prioritization challenge   |   Thousands of findings, limited capacity   |
+------------------------------+---------------------------------------------+
|    Coordination overhead     |          Multiple teams need to act         |
+------------------------------+---------------------------------------------+

Scanning identifies problems. None of these factors prevent identification. All of them prevent fixing.

Scanning Coverage Limitations

Automated scanning catches only a portion of WCAG violations. Industry estimates suggest 25-40% of issues are automatically detectable.

Complex issues requiring human judgment—context-appropriate alt text, focus management, logical reading order—escape automated detection entirely.

Even perfect scanning would miss 60-75% of issues.

What Remediation Provides

The capabilities detection lacks.

Actual Fixes

Remediation modifies HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to resolve accessibility barriers. Screen readers find accessible code from page load. Keyboard users can navigate. Low vision users can perceive content.

Scanning tells you "missing alt text." Remediation adds meaningful alt text.

Expert Implementation

Remediation requires accessibility expertise that most teams lack. Understanding WCAG criteria, implementing ARIA patterns, testing with assistive technology—these skills take years to develop.

Expert remediation provides this expertise without requiring internal hiring.

Verified Resolution

Remediation includes verification. After fixes deploy, scanning confirms resolution. The loop closes: detection → fixing → verification.

Scanning alone creates open loops: detection → report → backlog → drift → repeat.

Template-Level Efficiency

Expert remediation identifies template-level patterns. A header issue appearing on every page gets fixed once at the template level. TestParty's 50× duplicate reduction reflects this efficiency.

Scanning lists every instance. Remediation addresses the source.

The Business Case for Remediation

Why remediation delivers ROI that scanning cannot.

Lawsuit Prevention

<1% of TestParty customers have been sued while using the platform. This protection comes from remediation, not detection.

Scanning platforms document violations. Remediation eliminates them. When plaintiff attorneys test, they find accessible code.

+-----------------------------+---------------------------+
|        Platform Type        |     Customer Lawsuits     |
+-----------------------------+---------------------------+
|        Scanning-only        |   Unknown (not tracked)   |
+-----------------------------+---------------------------+
|    Overlay "remediation"    |     800+ in 2023-2024     |
+-----------------------------+---------------------------+
|   Source code remediation   |       0 (TestParty)       |
+-----------------------------+---------------------------+

Time to Compliance

Scanning provides instant results but no timeline to compliance. Findings accumulate faster than internal teams can address them.

Remediation provides timeline: TestParty achieves WCAG 2.2 AA compliance in 14-30 days.

+----------------------------+--------------------+-----------------------+
|          Approach          |   Detection Time   |    Compliance Time    |
+----------------------------+--------------------+-----------------------+
|       Scanning only        |       Hours        |   Never (no fixing)   |
+----------------------------+--------------------+-----------------------+
|    Scanning + internal     |       Hours        |      3-6+ months      |
+----------------------------+--------------------+-----------------------+
|   Integrated remediation   |       Hours        |       14-30 days      |
+----------------------------+--------------------+-----------------------+

Cost Comparison

Scanning tools have low upfront cost but create implementation burden.

+-------------------------+---------------------+-------------------------+-----------------------+
|         Approach        |     Annual Cost     |   Implementation Cost   |         Total         |
+-------------------------+---------------------+-------------------------+-----------------------+
|      Free scanning      |          $0         |   $50,000+ (internal)   |        $50,000+       |
+-------------------------+---------------------+-------------------------+-----------------------+
|   Enterprise scanning   |   $10,000-$50,000   |   $50,000+ (internal)   |   $60,000-$100,000+   |
+-------------------------+---------------------+-------------------------+-----------------------+
|        TestParty        |   $12,000-$60,000   |         Included        |    $12,000-$60,000    |
+-------------------------+---------------------+-------------------------+-----------------------+

Integrated remediation often costs less than scanning + separate implementation.

Customer Results: Remediation in Action

What happens when detection feeds directly into fixing.

Cozy Earth: Detection + Remediation

Cozy Earth had 8,000+ accessibility issues. Scanning would document them. Remediation would address them.

TestParty's approach: Spotlight detected all issues. Expert remediation fixed them. WCAG 2.2 AA compliance achieved in 2 weeks.

Scanning alone would have produced a report. Integrated remediation produced compliance.

UNTUCKit: Volume Addressed

UNTUCKit discovered 24,000+ issues through detection. This volume would overwhelm any internal implementation effort.

TestParty's expert remediation achieved 90% reduction in remediation time compared to traditional approaches. The findings didn't sit in reports—they fed into fixes.

18+ months partnership with no legal issues.

Zedge: Enterprise Scale

Zedge's 25 million monthly active users require enterprise-scale accessibility. Detection at this scale produces massive finding volumes.

Spotlight AI achieved 99% detection accuracy (their validation). Template-level remediation made results actionable. They're scaling across three platforms.

Detection validated. Remediation delivered.

Making the Transition

Moving from scanning to remediation.

If You're Scanning Only

Your scans have documented issues. Those issues need fixing. The path forward includes using scan findings to prioritize remediation, choosing remediation approach (internal, freelance, or expert service), and establishing continuous monitoring post-remediation.

Don't abandon scanning—use it as input to remediation.

If You're Considering Scanning Tools

Consider whether scanning alone achieves your goals. If you need compliance documentation, scanning helps. If you need actual compliance, remediation is required.

Integrated platforms like TestParty provide both detection and remediation in unified workflow.

The Integration Model

The most effective approach: detection that feeds directly into remediation.

TestParty workflow:

1. Spotlight AI scans comprehensively
2. Issues prioritized and grouped
3. Expert team creates source code fixes
4. PRs delivered via GitHub
5. Your team reviews and merges
6. Spotlight verifies fixes

No gap between finding and fixing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why doesn't accessibility scanning achieve compliance?

Scanning identifies issues but doesn't fix them. Compliance requires implementation—developer time, accessibility expertise, and prioritization bandwidth that most teams lack. WebAIM shows 94.8% of sites fail despite scanning tool availability. The implementation gap between detection and fixing is where compliance fails. Scanning documents liability; remediation eliminates it.

What percentage of accessibility issues can scanning detect?

Automated scanning catches an estimated 25-40% of WCAG violations. Complex issues requiring human judgment—contextual alt text, logical reading order, focus management—escape automated detection. Even comprehensive scanning with expert review finds only what exists to find—it doesn't fix anything. Detection coverage and remediation are separate problems.

How do scanning tools increase legal risk?

Scanning produces documentation of WCAG violations. When plaintiff attorneys file ADA lawsuits, they find the same issues your scans documented. The documentation proves knowledge of violations without demonstrating action to fix them. Scanning without remediation creates evidence of awareness coupled with evidence of inaction—potentially strengthening plaintiff cases.

What's the cost difference between scanning and remediation?

Free scanning tools cost $0 but require $50,000+ in internal implementation. Enterprise scanning ($10,000-$50,000/year) still requires separate implementation. TestParty integrated remediation costs $12,000-$60,000/year including detection and fixing. Integrated approaches often cost less total while delivering actual compliance versus documented violations.

How long does scanning take versus remediation?

Scanning provides results in hours. But scanning alone never achieves compliance—it's just observation. Scanning + internal implementation takes 3-6+ months. TestParty integrated detection + remediation achieves WCAG 2.2 AA compliance in 14-30 days. The difference: expert remediation eliminates the implementation gap that stretches timelines.

Should I stop using scanning tools if I get remediation?

No—continue using detection as part of remediation workflow. TestParty's Spotlight provides continuous scanning that feeds expert remediation. Detection finds issues; remediation fixes them; verification confirms resolution. The problem isn't scanning itself—it's scanning without remediation. Integrated approaches use detection as the first step, not the only step.

Related Resources

For more on detection vs. remediation:

• Best Accessibility Vendor: Detection vs Fixing — Vendor comparison
• Why Audits Alone Don't Achieve Compliance — Implementation gaps
• Automated Accessibility Remediation — Remediation technology
• Accessibility Testing Tools Comparison — Tool overview

Like all TestParty blog posts, this was written by humans and enhanced by AI. This content is for educational purposes only. Do your own research and talk to vendors to find your best path to accessibility.