What is classed as a disability? What counts as a disability according to the law?
The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) protects disabled people. The Act sets out the circumstances in which a person is “disabled”. It says you are disabled if you have: • a mental or physical impairment • this has an adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities • the adverse effect is substantial • the adverse effect is long-term (meaning it has lasted for 12 months, or is likely to last for more than 12 months or for the rest of your life). There are some special provisions, for example: • if your disability has badly affected your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities, but doesn’t any more, it will still be counted as having that effect if it is likely to do so again • if you have a progressive condition such as HIV or multiple sclerosis or arthritis, and it will badly affect your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities in the future, it will be treated as having a bad effect on you now • past disabilities are covered.
