No error appears when required fields are empty

Why does it matter?

A form that silently refuses an incomplete submission leaves everyone guessing, and screen reader users most of all: they cannot tell whether the message was sent, or which field stopped it.

Who it affects: Keyboard and screen reader users filling in forms, people with low vision who rely on clear hover and focus styles, people distracted or made unwell by motion, and anyone who finds their way around a site by its menus and help links.

What does Lumtera flag?

Found by Lumtera Pro's form tests (the Forms card of Lumtera → Checks → Page checks, "Test form"), on forms with at least one required field. For review: after the empty submission, no error message appeared within a few seconds. A tip: the form's own checks let the empty submission through, and the test guard stopped it, so nothing was sent. Nothing is ever sent: a safety guard stops any email, form entry or order while the test runs.

Check ID form-no-error-shown, as shown in review mode and saved results.

How do I fix it in WordPress?

When a required field is empty, the form should say so in text, next to the field and in a summary, and not send. Check the form's settings for its required fields and validation messages, then test it again.

Example

<input id="email" name="email" aria-required="true">
<!-- empty submit: nothing appears -->

<input id="email" name="email" aria-required="true" aria-invalid="true" aria-describedby="email-error">
<p id="email-error">Enter your email address.</p>

How do I check the fix?

1. Run the page check again from Lumtera Pro's Page checks screen. The finding disappears once the page passes.
2. Submit the form with the required fields empty, using only the keyboard and then a screen reader: the errors should be announced, focus should move to them, and each message should say what to fix. Hover over and Tab to links and buttons to see that they stay readable, and compare the menus on a few pages.