Ryanair bottom of Which? Travel annual airline survey

Ryanair’s reputation has declined so much that thousands of respondents told the consumer champion that they would never again fly Ryanair, even if it was cheaper than its rivals.

Of those who said there was one airline with which they’d never travel, 70% named Ryanair – no other airline came close.

Ryanair ruined the holiday plans of thousands of people in 2018 by cancelling flights and then refusing to pay its passengers compensation – resulting in the Civil Aviation Authority taking enforcement action.

The airline made £1.75 billion last year from ‘extras’ – 28% of its revenue. Assigned seating on the airline can cost up to £30 each for a return journey, priority boarding, which includes a wheely cabin case, costs an extra £12 and the cost of checking in extra luggage can also be significant.

The airline also repeatedly tinkered with its luggage rules, risking confusion among passengers with three separate changes over the course of the year. One passenger told Which?: ‘There are too many rules. I worry about getting caught with hidden costs,’.

In 2017, British Airways promised improvements after scoring just 52% in Which?’s short-haul rankings and 50% for its long-haul services.

Bringing back a second meal on long haul and a pledge of more M&S sandwiches to buy on short-haul went some way to arresting the decline, yet passengers still gave food and drink just two stars and the overall customer score was still a very underwhelming 56% for short-haul and a slightly better 58% for its long-haul flights.

EasyJet managed a better customer score than both Ryanair and BA, coming in the middle of the rankings with 63% – getting customers from A to B without too much drama for not much money.

At the other end of the scale, Jet2 impressed passengers with its service, seats and boarding and earned a customer score of 75%.

Rory Boland, Which? Travel editor, said: “Airfares might seem to be getting cheaper, but only if you don’t fancy sitting with your family and children or taking even a small cabin bag on-board. Increasingly you need a calculator to work out what the final bill will be, especially with Ryanair.

“It has spent the last two years cancelling thousands of flights, ruining hundreds of thousands of holidays and flouting the rules on compensation as well. The results of our survey show passengers are fed up. They should switch to one of their rivals, who prove that budget prices don’t have to mean budget service.”