Ryanair named worst brand for customer service in Which? survey
Ryanair has been named the worst brand for customer service in a survey.
Europe’s biggest airline was rated the lowest out of 100 leading companies in poll by consumer champion Which?.
Nearly 4,000 people were asked to rate how the brands made them feel, how helpful and knowledgeable their staff were, and how well they handled complaints.
Ryanair scored just 45 per cent for customer service overall and received the lowest rating of one star in all three categories. When asked about how well the airline handles complaints, 50 per cent of respondents gave it the lowest rating possible.
When asked to select from a list of 50 words, the majority of respondents chose to describe the budget carrier as “greedy”, “sneaky” and “arrogant”.
Other airlines included in the survey fared slightly better but none made it into the top 50.
British Airways came 83rd, with an overall customer service rating of 66 per cent, while easyJet was the highest ranking airline at 79th place with an overall score of 68 per cent.
Elsewhere in the travel sector, Jet2holidays was the highest rated tour operator, scoring an impressive 80 per cent and coming in 16th place.
Thomas Cook placed 56th with 73 per cent, followed by Tui, which ranked 65th with a 71 per cent customer service rating.
The brand that scored the highest overall was bank First Direct: it clocked up an overall customer service score of 89 per cent and scored four or five stars in all three categories. One customer told Which? that it is “the human touch” that sets it apart.
Harry Rose, editor of Which? Magazine, said: “While it’s good to see some familiar everyday brands flying the flag for great customer service, people spend a lot of money with their utility providers and on flights, so it’s disappointing to see some woeful performance across the board in those sectors.
“The best way to send a clear message to businesses about the importance of customer service is to spend your hard-earned cash with brands that make it a top priority – and don’t hesitate to complain if you feel you’ve been treated poorly.”
The Independent has asked Ryanair for comment.
Top 10 brands for customer service
1. First Direct
2. Lakeland
3. M&S (clothing/homewares)
4. Waitrose
= Waterstones
6. AO.com
= Screwfix
= Specsavers
9. Apple
= Nationwide
= Ocado (groceries)
Bottom 10 brands for customer service
90. Currys PC World
= Npower
92. The Range
= Vodafone
94. Sports Direct
95. Eon
96. Virgin Media
97. TalkTalk
98. BT
99. Scottish Power
100. Ryanair
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