There is no denying the fact that passage of the ADA has increased opportunities for people with disabilities as more employers are willing to hire qualified applicants with disabilities. While the law has been in existence for many years but still, there are millions of businesses and hundreds of counties, cities and towns with ADA obligations. It has given rise to the trend of ADA lawsuits wherein suits are filed against small businesses as well as big companies due to non-compliance. In many such cases, the access issues could be fixed inexpensively with the help of adacompliancepros.com. If these issues are not fixed in time, your business could also be sued and you might have to pay thousands of dollars towards legal fees and fines.
There are several benefits of working with a qualified and experienced ADA consultant. It is true that you will have to pay for their services but the right consultant will save a lot of money for your business and also prevent any kind of bad publicity. In most cases, the cost of hiring an ADA consultant could be a few hundred dollars though it can go up to thousands of dollars. The cost depends on the size and type of your business but you will definitely save tens of thousands of dollars in potential legal fees as well as fines.
The consultant will perform a thorough on-site audit of your facility to make sure that it is physically accessible as per the law. There will also perform policy reviews along with specialized trainings for the facility staff and HR. Usually, a detailed report is provided by the consultants. These reports include rough costs, photos, measurements as well as a transition plan to make sure your facility is compliant. Many good consultants also offer ongoing technical assistance. An experienced consultant will also help you with the tax breaks available and in case there is a lawsuit, they can help demonstrate your efforts.
One of the most important things you need to keep in mind is that a qualified consultant is not going to help you get out of the compliance with the law. A good consultant will always tell you everything you need to do to make your facility compliant even if it’s something you do not want to hear.
As far as finding the right ADA consultant is concerned, you will be spoilt for choice in case you do not make any efforts to find the right consultant. First and foremost, you should know that there is nothing known as a certified consultant. No certification is offered by the federal government for ADA consultants. If anybody advertises their services as a certified consultant, you should stay away from them.
Another important thing you need to keep in mind is that only the federal agencies and courts are qualified to tell that you are in compliance. There is no other authority to give you that guarantee. You will easily find individuals labeled as experts without any legitimate training or experience.
When it comes to hiring the right consultant, you need to make sure they have formal training. Sometimes, people just read a book or attend a two-day seminar, and start selling their services as ADA experts. Similarly, a person with disability without adequate training is not an ADA expert. You need to partner with someone who has a lot of experience in this field and has been offering their services for many years.
Check with their past clients and ask the consultant to provide samples of their work. Professional and qualified consultants will never shy away from sharing sample reports to demonstrate their qualifications. As far as the fees are concerned, professionals always charge reasonable prices. When the price happens to be too low or too high, it is usually not a good sign.
Overall, it takes a little work to choose the right ADA consultant but the efforts are worth it. You will potentially save a lot of money in terms of fines, legal fees as well as bad press if you fail to comply with the law. Keep the above-mentioned tips in mind and partner with a qualified and experienced ADA consultant to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.