Web Governance
Meta refresh should not cause the page to reload or redirect automatically after a short delay
2.2.1 timing Adjustable
Meta refresh should not cause the page to reload or redirect automatically after a short delay
The meta element is a piece of code that can be used to redirect the user to another website. It is allowed to do this immediately when the page loads, but other than that, it must not happen within the first 20 hours after the page loads.
Many users with different types of disabilities may need more time to read or navigate through the page. These users might not be able to complete their desired actions if they are automatically redirected to another website, especially if this happens shortly after the page has loaded.
This check affects the following users who have:
Visual impairments: Who access the site contents with a screen reader or screen magnification software and need more time for navigation.
Cognitive impairments: Who need more time to read and understand content.
Mobility impairments: Who need more time to navigate the page.
Bridgit is a blind mother to a five-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy:
"When I think about it, this mostly happens on news websites. I will go on to read an article that sounds interesting, and it takes me a little time to find the right content. But just as I am getting into it, they send me off to another page. It is usually to try and sell me a subscription or some other nonsense. It is always a bit hard for me to figure out what just happened. I guess it is kind of like if you were watching something on TV, and then someone just changes the channel on you without saying anything. It might sound funny, but trust me, it is not.”
This section provides some examples of the issue.
This page redirects to a new page after 30 seconds, which may prevent the user from fully interacting with the content as intended.
<head>
<meta http-equiv="refresh" content="30; URL='https://w3.org'"/>
</head>The page redirects after more than 20 hours, giving users plenty of time to interact with the content before the redirect occurs.
<head>
<meta http-equiv="refresh" content="72001; URL='https://w3.org'"/>
</head>This section provides information about how to identify and fix the issue.
The Acquia Web Governance platform highlights meta elements with an http-equiv attribute value of 'refresh' and a time attribute value between 0 and 72000 (20 hours).
To fix the issue, update your HTML code to meet one of the following requirements:
Does not use meta refresh.
Has a time value set to more than 72,000 seconds (20 hours).
Has a time value set to "0" for an instant refresh (not recommended).
See the ACT rules section below for a link to a complete technical explanation of this check.
Related accessibility conformance testing rules:
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Web Governance