MSE News: Ryanair 'sticks two fingers up at passengers' with new card fees

jamie11

What a lot of bile in this thread.

I've booked several dozens of flights over the past few years, sometimes RA sometimes EZ, sometimes Croatia air, even the now defunct Click (BA and Iberia).

Some give better customer experience than others but every single one of them has got me to my destination, and what are we talking about in terms of time? For most European flights from the time you check in until you leave your destination airport it's going to be a matter of maybe 5 or 6 hours. Anybody can put up with poor service for that long if it's saving you a bob or two.

My next trip in October (with RA) is costing the grand total of about £100 return in total for two of us including all charges and even bringing a hold case back with us. I have had the same trip for as little as 1p each way and as much as £250 return as well.

FWIW I do not think any of the airlines scrimp on safety or maintenance, maybe in a third world country but they would not get away with it here.

alphaman29

Ryanair's CEO O'Leary is very vocal when governments introduce anything he disagrees with even though it is the customer who eventually pays the cost. Whilst it makes good business sense to negotiate the best deal and reduce costs where possible, he seems to have lost touch with reality on some issues all to maintain the lowest headline ticket price. Just go to their website and click ‘Fees’ to see the potential added costs (the link to see how to avoid these fees appears to be broken!!).


He has proposed charging to use the toilet, seating where one is standing up, and trying to force passengers to print their own Boarding passes or pay £34. I can understand his wish to remove Check-In Desks (if there is a user-friendly alternative) but to suggest there is no need for co-pilots is outrageous and speaks volumes about his attitude to passengers and their safety. I have seen enough ‘Air Crash Investigation’ documentaries to know that even with the highly automated cockpits in modern aircraft in the end survival can be dependent on both pilots and definitely not the luck of the Irish!

Where Ryanair scores over other carriers is with passengers who do not need to have baggage in the hold, say, those who have a property abroad. This move is unlikely to change this advantage but O'Leary has admitted the time will come when they will have to improve customer perception with a better service – the question is when?

mikeeboy

2sides2everystory wrote: »

Yes you'd better grip tightly if you find yourself without a clue about what's happening one day. Let's trust you don't have to worry, shall we, like we do when we go on fairground roller-coasters perhaps - we trust to statistics and have fun, don't we? And long has it been so and long may it be so. But aviation is a bit different.

I don't see much about crashes in this thread, even though it is true there have been a few upsets. Maybe you are simply poo-pooing my cautions about how we ensure that a company like this who sticks its fingers up to one group of policemen might at least continue to be regulated such that they would not dream of doing the same to the safety policemen.

We already saw O'Leary sending one of his aircraft into forecast possible ash danger areas to make his personal point that he thought it was safe. Do you really think his aircraft have always evaded ash when it's been out there somewhere as forecast? Do you really think he knows best about everything?

He knows how to get me to Alicante for £60 return .. safely ... and on time. That's all I'm interested in.

Doc_N

mikeeboy wrote: »

I just can't believe some of the nonsense that's posted in this thread. Anyone can post horror stories from any of the airlines when things go wrong. There's been people talking of planes crashing and them cutting corners on safety???? Get a grip people

2sides2everystory wrote: »

Yes you'd better grip tightly if you find yourself without a clue about what's happening one day. Let's trust you don't have to worry, shall we, like we do when we go on fairground roller-coasters perhaps - we trust to statistics and have fun, don't we? And long has it been so and long may it be so. But aviation is a bit different.

We already saw O'Leary sending one of his aircraft into forecast possible ash danger areas to make his personal point that he thought it was safe. Do you really think his aircraft have always evaded ash when it's been out there somewhere as forecast? Do you really think he knows best about everything?

That's a point very well made. If people want to fly with an 'airline' whose CEO thinks it knows more about safety than the Civil Aviation Authority and is prepared to take chances that others aren't prepared to take, just to save a few quid (and even that's doubtful much of the time) that's their choice.

It's not mine, and judging from the posts here it's not the choice of quite a large number of others.

mikeeboy

So you really think that he sends planes up in the air "just cos he thinks it's safe".

I can't believe what I'm reading. When will anyone realise that the guy is just a one man PR machine?

2sides2everystory

Mikee Baby we all realised Mikey Baby was a one man PR machine donkey's years ago and he made many of us smile. He could no doubt still manage it on the news tonight if he put his mind to it.

However, as he stated many moons ago he is not in the business of selling tickets to passengers, he's in the business of selling passengers to airports, and for that matter I am not in the business of buying his PR, I'm in the business of making very informed decisions about purchasing useful safe economic transport from A to B. In that, I know best thanks.

Up until now, I have been generally comfortable in including Ryanair almost unconsciously in my plans, indeed because they generally fly to quite challenging airports (pilot-wise) I think I have even said in the past that they probably have as skilled pilot workforce as any and that their engineering people must have the best experience on some 275 aircraft now of a single type and series, but people change. Businesses change. Machines wear out.

I am however becoming less comfortable quite rapidly now and may regrettably have to start to consider alternatives more actively unless I become reassured.

John_Pierpoint

You are far more likely to die in a road accident on the way to the airport.

plumber2009

For me its simple.

I will NEVER, EVER fly with ryanair again.

As a customer I demand to be treated with respect. There are other companies more deserving of my custom. A recent good carrier that I discovered was MONARCH and there customer service, costs and clarity was far better, not to mention more seating space on the aircraft. Their fair was over £60 cheaper and food and drink was way cheaper than ryanair also.


Dont complain, Vote with your feet as its the only way these corporations will learn.

whatmichaelsays

People are confusing "What O'Leary wants to do to cut costs" with "What O'Leary says that he wants to do because it makes good PR".

O'Leary is never going to charge passengers to use a toilet and he knows that he is never going to be able offer standing on flights. He says it because journalists love outrageous comments just like that.

Why say stuff like that? Because friendly, fluffy press releases are boring, they're tedious and they're a waste of time. Nobody is interested in a friendly survey or another ticket promo - journalists want negativity, scandal and outrage. Ryanair realises that and so their bullish statements, posturing and outragous claims are designed to generate maximum press coverage, online chatter and, at the same time, reinforce their position that they are driving down the cost of air travel.

Ryanair have an excellent PR strategy that suits their market position perfectly - and journalists fall for it hook, line and sinker.

2sides2everystory

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

You are far more likely to die in a road accident on the way to the airport.

No I am not. I am in control, and it is motorway almost all the way. I've been driving on motorways for 35 years and (Edit: lately at least, in my nether years!) never come close because I understand my machine, I arrange servicing how I like it and check it to be sure, I understand my capabilities and shortcomings, those of other road users, and the likely risks associated with them and the weather and I also drive a machine which is (regrettably) more likely to kill other road users if I am in an accident than it ever is to disintegrate and leave me dead.

I told you I know best about my own transport and you didn't believe me