When we talk about ‘human rights’ we mean certain specific rights that every person has. These are rights that prevent you being abused by others. This usually means the state or a public authority. 

Human rights include specific rights such as the right to life, the right to a fair trial, the right to marry and the right to the privacy of your home and family life. Public authorities have a duty not to interfere with these rights. 

The Human Rights Act 1998 gives everyone, including disabled people, additional rights. It only applies to public authorities, such as local or central government or an NHS Trust.

Depending on the circumstances, you may be able to bring a claim under the Human Rights Act as well as under the DDA. However even if you do not have a claim under the DDA, you might still have a case under the Human Rights Act.

If you bring a disability discrimination case against a service provider to court, then the court must consider whether the Human Rights Act is relevant to any part of the case. The court must do this even if the service provider is not a public authority.