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Re: value of re-testing after manual accessibility audit

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From: Tim Harshbarger
Date: Jun 10, 2020 8:39AM

Barbara,

Before I share my opinions I just want to disclose that I do work for Deque
Systems which is a company that does accessibility assessments.

In my personal opinion any good accessibility test should include both
automated and manual testing. The automated testing helps reduce the work
needed for manual testing. Manual testing catches those things automated
testing can't. Automated testing shouldn't be a safety net for manual
testing. Instead it should complement manual testing.

Once your developers address the issues in the accessibility reports they
receive, you likely will want to ensure the problems were actually fixed.
If your developers have a way to validate their fixes, you may not need help
with retesting. However, if your developers lack the ability or you are
trying to solve particularly challenging accessibility problems retesting
can be invaluable.

I hope that helps.

Thanks!
Tim
Tim Harshbarger
Senior Accessibility Consultant
Deque Systems
-----Original Message-----
From: WebAIM-Forum < <EMAIL REMOVED> > On Behalf Of
Barbara
Sent: Wednesday, June 10, 2020 9:17 AM
To: <EMAIL REMOVED>
Subject: [WebAIM] value of re-testing after manual accessibility audit

Hello, could anybody please help with some advice? I am looking into third
parties to do an accessibility audit of our sites. We are a charity and we
have multiple domains and sub-domains, so it can be potentially expensive.

The companies I contacted quoted us on different variables, one of which is
re-testing after the manual audit check for fixes or new problems created by
the fixes.

Another variable is automated testing on top of the manual as a safety net
in case something has been missed by the manual one.

How much value is there in re-testing? Is it risky to skip this step?
Same for automated testing. How much value, if you have done a proper manual
one?

Many thanks,
Barbara
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