In our article, we will talk about how blind and visually impaired people perform banking operations and which problems they encounter.
As we know, sighted people can perform banking operations from ATMs, websites of banks, or apps that can be installed onto mobile phones easily. Can a blind and visually impaired person perform banking operations like withdrawing or depositing money from a bank account, or sending money to a different account or their own account, on their own? First, let’s begin our article by answering this question.
Can blind and visually impaired people perform banking operations on their own and without getting assistance from anyone?
The answer to this question varies according to the way the person performs the banking operation or which bank he/she uses.
For example, you probably noticed that on some ATMs, there is a headphone jack. Have you ever wondered what this headphone jack is for?
The headphone jack is designed for blind and visually impaired people. When a blind and visually impaired person comes into the bank on his/her own, he/she plugs the headphone into the headphone jack. Then, what appears in the screen is read aloud to the person and he/she is given audible instructions in order for him to perform the operation. The blind and visually impaired person can answer the questions by using the keys on the keypad. For example, the person can be instructed to confirm the operation by pressing the 5 keys, otherwise the 8 keys.
In this case, how does a blind and a visually impaired person know which key is 5 and which key is 8 on the keypad of the ATM?
If you look carefully, there is a small dot on the 5 keys of the landline phones and on the numlock part of the computer keyboard. This dot is also found on the keypads of the ATMs. Thanks to this dot, a blind and visually impaired person finds the 5 keys and he knows that there are the 8 keys under the 5 keys.
A blind and visually impaired person finds all numbers on the keypad relative to the position of the 5 keys.
Also, on some ATMs built for blind and visually impaired people, some keys are written in Braille, besides the Latin alphabet (ok, cancel, or the delete key).
When we say it is built for blind and visually impaired people, this ATM can be used by everyone, but when the headphone is connected to the headphone jack, it becomes usable for the blind and visually impaired person.
How does a blind and visually impaired person perform banking operations from his/her phone?
A blind and visually impaired person uses his/her phone by turning on the screen reading feature. Then he/she installs the banking app and uses it like any other app, performing the operations by following the instructions that the app gives him/her.
A blind and visually impaired person can visit a bank’s webpage and perform operations with the assistance of a screen-reading program.
So, do blind and visually impaired people perform these operations always without any problems? Do they have problems that they encounter?
Unfortunately, blind and visually impaired people can encounter some issues while performing banking operations. You can read some of these problems below.
When blind and visually impaired people go to an ATM, the ATM might not be usable for them, or in some cases, when they plug a headphone into the ATM with a headphone jack, the ATM might not work. In this case, a blind and visually impaired person has to get help from an officer of the bank or from someone who is close to them.
In mobile apps and websites, blind and visually impaired people can encounter a problem where the screen-reading program does not read what is written on the screen properly.
This problem is because the banking apps or websites might not be designed in accordance with the accessibility guidelines. As a result, either the blind and visually impaired person performs the operation with assistance from a sighted person, or it takes longer for him to perform the operation than a sighted person, and this is a waste of time.
As BlindLook, our aim is to provide access to banking services for blind and visually impaired people, just like everyone. For this, audio simulations that explain how can banking apps be used by blind and visually impaired people are available in the EyeLearn section of our website.
Thanks to these brands that have partnered with us in the financial sector, blind and visually impaired people can carry out banking transactions freely. We would like to thank all our brands in the Financial sector for providing an accessible banking experience for the blind and visually impaired.
Author: Fatih Yüksek / BlindLook Team
