WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

E-mail List Archives

Clarification on Error suggestion and Error identification

for

From: Sumit Patel
Date: Apr 27, 2025 2:33AM

Hi all,
I just have a couple of queries regarding WCAG 3.3.1 (Error Identification)
and 3.3.3 (Error Suggestion) criteria, and I’d appreciate your insights.
1.
Invalid Date Input
When we input a date in an invalid format in the date edit field and press
the Tab key, the input gets removed without any error message or feedback.
Would this be considered a failure under 3.3.3 (Error Suggestion), or does
it fall under a different criterion?
2.
Type Dropdown Field
There’s a dropdown where initially no values are shown. When a user types a
keyword, results appear if there’s a match; otherwise, it shows a “No
results” message. Since the accepted inputs are always alphabetic, even
typing numbers shows the same "No results" message.
Should we consider adding a more specific message like “Please enter
alphabets only” when digits are entered, to meet the 3.3.3 requirement? Or
is the current behavior acceptable under WCAG?
Looking forward to your thoughts.

Regards,
Sumit.