HRC Guidance: Retailers’ legal responsibility to disabled customers

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has released new guidance to help retailers to support disabled customers, which local Age UKs may wish to share in their local area.

New guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) aims to help retailers to provide better support disabled customers. The guidance explains how retailers should anticipate the needs of disabled customers and make reasonable adjustments so that they can shop online or in stores with confidence – especially for food and essential items. Local Age UKs may wish to share this guidance with retailers and other contacts in your local area.

The new guidance includes four steps:

• Provide a service that meets the needs of all customers – anticipate, prepare and make reasonable adjustments for disabled customers.
• Plan ahead to think about the needs of your disabled customers – consider and make changes to policies and procedures, as well as provide extra support and equipment, where necessary.
• Communicate with your customers – inform customers about how they will be supported through a variety of ways such as easy to read signs and spoken announcements.
• Train your staff – ensure that staff are supported with the right tools to help disabled customers, in line with the latest government guidelines on Covid-19.

Full details of the guidance can be found on the EHRC website.