A service provider is any organisation that provides goods, facilities or services to the public, whether paid for or free, no matter how large or small the organisation is.
The definition of ‘service provider’ is quite broad: it includes most organisations that deal directly with members of the public. There is a list of examples below.
For example, a manufacturer that sells goods only through retailers would not be considered a service provider, but the retailers would.
Similarly, an investment bank that deals only with other companies and not with the public would be excluded from the definition; a high street bank, though, would be included.
Services also include public amenities such as parks, public buildings, leisure facilities and railway stations, whether they are run by the Government or by private companies. However, public authorities, and those acting on their behalf have additional responsibilities. See the section on Public authorities.
Private members’ clubs which operate a strict selection procedure for membership, or clubs which provide services only to their members, are generally exempt from equality legislation. However, club members and employees must not be subjected to unlawful discrimination. Disabled people who are club members are entitled to reasonable adjustments under the Disability Discrimination Act. See Private clubs and associations.
There are some circumstances in which your responsibilities as a service provider may be different:
- If you provide goods or services on behalf of a public sector client, you may have to comply with their additional legal responsibilities under the public sector duties to promote equality.
- Under the Disability Discrimination Act, service providers must make ‘reasonable adjustments’ where these are needed to ensure that disabled people are not disadvantaged when using them.
- If there is a genuine reason for providing a service to certain groups of people only, you may be able to do so. Find out more about when discrimination is lawful.
- If making reasonable adjustments for disabled people would lead to you breaking a different legal obligation, you may not be required to do it. See Making reasonable adjustments for more information.