Beware on Ryanair!

lijaloo

SaveTheEuro wrote: »

If you are elderly/disabled/with children you often get the chance to be among the first to board, even if you haven't paid for priority boarding.

Not so with Ryanair. They haven't given priority to those with children or the elderly priority for soame time and I think they now board disabled travellers last, reserving seats for them close to the front.

PolishBigSpender

lijaloo wrote: »

Not so with Ryanair. They haven't given priority to those with children or the elderly priority for soame time and I think they now board disabled travellers last, reserving seats for them close to the front.

And nor should they - if they want priority boarding, then they should pay for it.

I must admit, Polish people are a disgrace in UK airports when flying with Ryanair. The amount of Polish families I've seen, abusing check-in staff, all because British ground crew will stick to the rules rigidly and won't allow them and their precious brat to board first is beyond a joke.

MarkBargain

PolishBigSpender wrote: »

And nor should they - if they want priority boarding, then they should pay for it.

What does it say about our society when we don't let the elderly, disabled, pregnant women or people with very young children have priority? It's a bit like not giving up your seat on a bus for an elderly person just because your ticket cost more! Let's have some common decency about us.

PolishBigSpender

MarkBargain wrote: »

What does it say about our society when we don't let the elderly, disabled, pregnant women or people with children have priority?

Why should people paying good money for Priority Boarding have to share their experience with people from that group? The whole point of priority boarding is that you're first - and not stuck behind some granny with a screaming grandchild. If they want priority, they can pay for it, just like everybody else.

blueplatinum

Lieutenant_Thrift wrote: »

Although there's been little response other than sycophancy and toadyism on this forum, I am heartened by the indirect support we've had in our opinion of our Ryanair experience going out before New Year from none other than the CX of the Office of Fair Trading who attacked their payment policy as puerile and childish. I'd say that the rules on hand luggage and the attitude of the staff member who chose to enforce them on our outward journey could be described in exactly the same way. Just as charging £40 for using a debit card for a family when it does in fact cost about £1.50 is dishonest and stupid, so is charging £40 for printing a boarding pass or forcing customers to repack their bags or pay £35 so they've only got one.

On a lighter note, we had no problems on the return journey and the RA staff were pleasant and friendly. We only had one bag each but the staff didn't go as far as weighing or measuring them as I'm sure our bags were just over the limits despite our best efforts to comply.

I think the staff on the return flight realised pedantic enforcement of the rules in an attempt to get more money for RA would only serve to alienate the customers who, after all, are the lifeblood of the airline.

I assume you work and do your job to the best of your ability in return for your pay.

Why then do you appear to praise ground staff operating Ryan Air services who fail to do their jobs properly and chastise those who do do so?

lijaloo

PolishBigSpender wrote: »

Why should people paying good money for Priority Boarding have to share their experience with people from that group? The whole point of priority boarding is that you're first - and not stuck behind some granny with a screaming grandchild. If they want priority, they can pay for it, just like everybody else.

I take it that you were never a screaming child and will never grow old.

These groups were always boarded first because they took longer to get onboard and seated.

Mr_Lahey

I love Ryanair and in regards to screaming kids i just wanna tell the parent that if they won't get a grip of their kid - can i?

PolishBigSpender

lijaloo wrote: »

I take it that you were never a screaming child and will never grow old.

These groups were always boarded first because they took longer to get onboard and seated.

Ryanair are brutally effective when it comes to that sort of thing - I've heard cabin crew before tell some parents that unless they get their child seated NOW, they would be offloaded immediately.

zolablue25

I have a child and a disabled wife and I have no problems paying the extra for priority boarding. I just factored it into the overall price of a ticket. I was a bit miffed to find out after that because my wife has asked for assistance she will be boarded last! Shame their on line system couldn't have flagged that up at the time! Presumably seats will be reserved for all of our party (3) and not just my wife.

MarkBargain

zolablue25 wrote: »

I have a child and a disabled wife and I have no problems paying the extra for priority boarding. I just factored it into the overall price of a ticket. I was a bit miffed to find out after that because my wife has asked for assistance she will be boarded last! Shame their on line system couldn't have flagged that up at the time! Presumably seats will be reserved for all of our party (3) and not just my wife.

I just think we have to be careful about going down the "slippery slope" of charging disabled people for things which they need through no fault of their own. As an able bodied person I would feel bad about boarding ahead of someone very disabled or elderly. Incidentally, didn't Ryanair have a controversy a few years back my refusing to provide wheelchairs?