Ryanair’s revised customer charter promises to make travel enjoyable

Ryanair unveiled the second phase of its “Always Getting Better” plan with a new, eight-point customer charter that includes promises to be Europe’s “most reliable” airline and to make travel an enjoyable experience.

Announcing details of the plan at London’s Hospital Club this morning, Ryanair chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs announced details of new features, aircraft interiors and a new look for cabin crew.

The new charter also promises to offer the “best choice” of destinations, to maintain safety as a priority and to offer lower fares than any of its competitors.

From this summer passengers will be able to reserve a fare for 24 hours, but it will cost them €5 to do so. The much-criticised airport check-in fee will also be reduced, from €70 to €45, but Jacobs pointed out that only 0.5 per cent of its 90 million customers actually waited until they got to the airport to check in. Customers will also be able to get a refund on a cancelled booking so long as they do so within 24 hours of making the booking, and then for a charge of €15; the cost of getting a new flight if you miss the one you’re booked on will be reduced from €160 to €99.

Increased personalisation

The website is also getting an overhaul, primarily so as to increase personalisation, which will let customers to store information like payment and identity details but also allow Ryanair to target passengers with offers and options based on their flight histories and preferences. The future of Ryanair, according to Jacobs, is to be a “travel retailer that specialises in flights”.

New uniforms, new menu options and a new-look cabin will be rolled out before the end of the year. Ryanair is also looking to break the 100 million-passenger barrier in 2015 for the first time in its 30-year history, with a view toward carrying 160 million passengers by 2024 on 500 aircraft, having committed to buying 380 new planes during the same period.