WARNING - Ryanair 'online check in' farce

Wallhart

I hate it when people are late. They always complain about the system. In reality most people didnt plan well enough.

If you cut it fine and lose out then thats your fault.

However what is not right is the fact that Ryanair charge you for everything and then do not have sufficient staff numbers etc.

richardw

Wallhart wrote: »

I hate it when people are late.

BUT some passengers were there 2 hours before their flight and there weren't enough drop off desks for the sheer volume of people.

Wallhart

Yeah that is fair enough. i can understand that hence why i said about the understaffing. But people who cut it fine like the op have no one to blame when something such as a flight is important to you.

rpb424

I've think I've gleaned a bit more info about the checkin procedure, could someone confirm whether this is correct or not?

For those who booked prior to 20 May and paid up front for airport check in, they have the choice to do this, or can use online checkin. However what 'airport checkin' actually now means is simply the facility to be able to print your boarding pass at a machine in the terminal rather than go to the desk and have a person do it as it always used to be. Having printed it there you then join the bag drop queue with everyone else. i.e. there are no checkin desks AT ALL where a real person will print a boarding card.

In addition, those who booked after 20 May MUST print their boarding card online prior to arrival at the terminal (or incur the £40 reprint charge), they are not able to use the machines mentioned above, which will presumably be removed at the beginning of October when online checkin in mandatory for everyone.

Is this all correct?

peterbaker

rpb424 I for one understand the reason for your latest question perfectly, but unless you can find someone who can confirm what you think, I would suggest it is far better to print your own boarding passes like I decided to do, and have them in your hand before you get to Stansted, than worry about those white elephant 'kiosk' machines at Stansted.

What I would say however is that I am pretty sure I saw no-one in the bagdrop/checkin queue at Stansted who seemed to have been sent away from the desk to the kiosk except if they had excess baggage or additional unpaid-for bags. And I queued twice myself because I first queued in Row J and having reached a desk was unceremoniously sent away to Row F after queuing in the wrong area for 20 minutes or more :mad: because I was so early that the board did not tell me where to queue.

I can also confirm that if you HAVE checked-in online, the white elephant kiosk machines are of absolutely no use to you unless you are paying for excess baggage or extra items. I tried them first and was appalled by how useless the application responses were in my case. The kiosk did not confirm that I had already checked-in, nor did it offer a reprint. It seemed to asume that the only reason I was there was to offer to pay for some extras. From that I conclude that the application developers need a kick up the pants alongwith the customer communications director who approved the website messages about bagdrop and 'transitional' bookers. If you HAVEN'T checked in online by the time you have a play with a kiosk machine, I have no idea what they might offer to print I'm afraid.

What I am saying in answer to your latest question is that I BELIEVE if you did nothing and just treated the bagdrop desk as an old-style check-in desk, that they WOULD print and hand you old style boarding cards to you AT THE DESK. I can't really see how they could dare to anything different if you booked prior to 20 May. Would they really ask you to go to the kiosk and then queue again? I am pretty sure there were people in the queue who had no boarding passes and DID get them from the desk, but I may be wrong.

My recommendation however is as before - check in online at home thereby converting yourself into a pseudo post 20 May booked customer and thus minimise fuss and uncertainty to bearable limits

rpb424

peterbaker wrote: »

What I am saying in answer to your latest question is that I BELIEVE if you did nothing and just treated the bagdrop desk as an old-style check-in desk, that they WOULD print and hand you old style boarding cards to you AT THE DESK. I can't really see how they could dare to anything different if you booked prior to 20 May. Would they really ask you to go to the kiosk and then queue again? I am pretty sure there were people in the queue who had no boarding passes and DID get them from the desk, but I may be wrong.

I have a work colleague who flew in June (having booked prior to May) and he told me that this is exactly what had happened to him. They were turned away having reached the desk because they hadn't already printed their boarding cards at the machines. They had to go to the machines, do the necessary and then queue all over again. Hence as far as I can see, all your prepaid 'airport checkin fee' now entitles you to do is to use the machine at the terminal for no extra charge. Presumably those who booked after May CAN get a card printed at the machine but only if they stump up the £40 fee there and then since they should have already checked in online.

I've already decided to preprint my boarding cards at home since it appears that there is only one type of queue structure now and hence nothing to be gained by using airport check in.

peterbaker

Oooh! I would have been so so angry if that had happened to me ... I'd have stood in the middle and be sure I would have gained attention from both throngs at Row J and Row F:

"Listen Up Everybody - This is how this Ryanair Fiasco is supposed to work today. I'm a customer and this is what the plonkers have just done to me and how you can avoid them doing it to you :money:"

and I'd have felt good to get it off my chest

...and my travel party would probably have hidden behind the nearest kiosks :rotfl:

mobby-2554

Bob_the_Saver wrote: »

One of the main reasons the bag drop takes so long is the people who can't read
and try to take and then delay the queue whilst they try and take stuff out or have to pay an excess.

I 've just got back from Tenerife & my flights were with Ryanair, I noticed the bag drop of queue took a while because of overweight bags.

I was amazed at how many people who know the weight allowance, get to the airport then realize they're over weight.
They then start to put things in other bags & they're still over.
Have to pay excess but have caused a delay.
They then accuse Ryanair of just making money but most TO do it, so it's not just Ryanair.

Ryanair do make it clear 10kg hand luggage 15kg checked baggage.
So if it over it's not their fault it's ours.

They also called all Priority Boarding passengers first both ways.

I,ve never had a problem with Ryanair & for the money we saved I say thank you to Ryanair!

Pollycat

mobby-2554 wrote: »

I 've just got back from Tenerife & my flights were with Ryanair, I noticed the bag drop of queue took a while because of overweight bags.

I was amazed at how many people who know the weight allowance, get to the airport then realize they're over weight.
They then start to put things in other bags & they're still over.
Have to pay excess but have caused a delay.
They then accuse Ryanair of just making money but most TO do it, so it's not just Ryanair.

Ryanair do make it clear 10kg hand luggage 15kg checked baggage.
So if it over it's not their fault it's ours.

I don't know if Ryanair (or other airlines) do this, but if someone is over their limit and they need to repack, redistribute or discard their luggage I think they should be asked to step out of the check-in queue whilst they do this so that people who ARE within the limit can be processed without delay.
Then when they've finished faffing about they can retake their place.

PolishBigSpender

Pollycat wrote: »

I don't know if Ryanair (or other airlines) do this, but if someone is over their limit and they need to repack, redistribute or discard their luggage I think they should be asked to step out of the check-in queue whilst they do this so that people who ARE within the limit can be processed without delay.
Then when they've finished faffing about they can retake their place.

Problem is, you'd then get people coming on here angry because they were forced to the back of the queue because of their own inability to sort out their baggage before they arrive at the airport.