Ryanair rubbishes report after being voted ‘worst’ brand for customer service
Ryanair has come bottom in a customer service survey of 100 UK brands by Which? magazine.
The airline scored just 54% in the poll, compared to 88% scored by the winner, cosmetics firm Lush.
The Which? report said Ryanair, along with BT and Talk Talk, deserved special mention for ‘poor’ two-star ratings in every element of customer service.
"Passengers appear to agree with Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary’s open admission that price is a priority over customer service," said the report.
It said one recent passenger had found Ryanair "aggressive and hostile towards customers. Staff are rude and unpleasant".
Another flyer related their poor in-flight treatment, lamenting "rude air stewards who make you feel like a nuisance rather than a customer".
"Others are unwilling to be treated badly, whatever the savings. ‘I now prefer to pay £50 extra for my flights and to be treated like a human being,’ concluded one of their experience."
But Ryanair laughed off the report, saying it was based on a "useless survey of 3,300 people, including their pet hamsters, gerbils and goldfish".
Ryanair’s Robin Kiely said: "We surveyed over 3 million passengers on the Ryanair website last night – only two of them had ever heard of Which? and none of them had ever bought it or read it.
"Ryanair’s survey conclusively proves that Which? magazine hasn’t got a clue about what air travel consumers actually do, because they’re too busy booking Ryanair’s low fare, on-time flights to waste time filling in Which? magazine’s tiny surveys."
Other travel brands featuring in the report scored more highly.
British Airways and Thomson were among the brands in 20th position, both scoring 75%, while First Choice was among those in joint 38th position with a score of 73%.
Virgin scored 72% and was in the 51st position bracket, while Thomas Cook and Flybe were just below in 56th position, scoring 71%.
EasyJet scored 69%, which put it in joint 68th position.
The report said the biggest bugbears for consumers were being kept waiting, lack of knowledge, poor problem solving, and not getting what they pay for.
** Meanwhile, Ryanair has announced today that it is to remove the Recaptcha security feature for individual passengers, although it will keep it for high volume bookers, screenscrapers, and travel agents (see separate story).
Ryanair is also making other changes to its website to make it easier and quicker for passengers to navigate and is also making its downloadable app free of charge (previously it was €3).
by Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
TAP Air Portugal to operate 29 flights due to strike on December 11
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt
Digital Travel Reporter of the Mirror totally seduced by HotelPlanner AI Travel Agent
Strike action set to cause travel chaos at Brussels airports