Wizz Air has finished last in an annual survey of short-haul airlines, receiving complaints from passengers about its level of customer service and unreliable flight departures.
The budget carrier was among several airlines rated by more than 8,000 travellers in a survey conducted by consumer company Which?. Wizz Air received a poor customer score of 48 per cent, with passengers awarding it one star out of five for boarding experience, as well as for cabin environment and seat comfort; the airline has some of the least generous legroom, with its seat pitch - the distance between two rows in standard economy - being two inches smaller than even its budget rival Ryanair.
Wizz Air achieved no higher than two stars in any of the remaining categories, including value for money and customer service. One unhappy customer reported their flight was “an unpleasant experience” and there were repeated complaints about delays. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) data revealed the airline was among the worst offenders for punctuality last year, with just 56 per cent of flights arriving on time. Of the short-haul airlines included in the survey, only Tui fared worse for punctuality, with less than half (45%) of its flights on time.
Wizz Air has expanded rapidly in recent years, but its growth has not come without disruption and uncertainty for passengers, with routes frequently paused or scrapped altogether. Last April it launched a number of new routes from Cardiff Airport, before announcing that most of these would be pulled from the market over the winter period - despite many customers having already booked. The CAA has also previously raised concerns about high volumes of complaints about the airline via the Alternative Dispute Resolution Scheme and the courts.
Ryanair (52%), Eurowings (53%), British Airways (56%) and Lufthansa (57%) finished just ahead of Wizz Air. Ryanair received a number of one and two-star scores, including one star for boarding experience, seat comfort, food and drink and cabin environment, with one respondent summing up their experience as “just awful”. The airline scored better on customer service and value for money.
British Airways also faired poorly in the survey, with one respondent saying they felt their flying experience was “a race to the bottom, providing as little as possible and making cattle class sound like something better". The airline scored only two stars for boarding, seat comfort and value for money, and no more than three stars in any other category. 2.3 per cent of its flights were cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice, making it among the least reliable airlines surveyed The worst offender for last-minute cancellations was Eurowings, which cancelled 3.4 per cent of its flights within twenty-four hours of departure, followed by Flybe (3.1%), now in administration.
Jet2.com topped the list of short-haul airlines, with a customer score of 80%. Travellers awarded it an impressive five stars for customer service, with multiple customers praising the helpful and friendly staff. One remarked that the airline “excelled in all areas of customer support”, while another claimed it is “the best airline by a country mile”. Only 0.5% of its flights were cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice.
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Rory Boland, Editor of Which? Travel, said: "Travellers have had a torrid time in recent years, with last-minute delays and cancellations an unacceptably common occurrence. While airlines like Jet2.com have distinguished themselves by offering flyers excellent customer care and a reliable service, too many of their competitors continually fail to measure up.
“If alternative carriers are available for your route, avoid Wizz Air, as its poor record on customer care means you’re likely to be left high and dry in the event your flight is delayed or cancelled.”
A WizzAir spokesperson said: "At Wizz Air, we do everything possible to ensure that passengers reach their destination on time and with minimal delay. We invest heavily into time performance, which is key to our ultra-efficient business model. A number of issues affecting the global aviation industry contributed to a worse time performance in 2022.
"These issues resulted from a widespread shortage in staff, in particular within air traffic control, ground operations and baggage handling, security and across airports. We are committed to constantly reviewing processes to mitigate these issues and are seeing an overall improvement in the on-time performance of our routes.
"Wizz Air operates a fleet of brand new, state-of-the-art Airbus aircraft, with an average age of 4.6 years, which offer passengers comfort, space, and modern interiors. The A321neo features the widest single-aisle cabin configuration with 239 18-inch-wide seats.
"Every aircraft is cleaned after each flight and deep cleaned every night. The onboard menu is reviewed and updated on a bi-monthly basis and, following customer feedback, a local products range was recently introduced on all Wizz Air UK flights. We welcome all customer feedback, so that we can continuously refine our processes to further enhance customer experience. ”
A British Airways Spokesperson said: “We don’t feel this small survey, conducted during one of the most challenging periods in global aviation, accurately represents the views of the tens of millions of customers who’ve chosen to fly with us over the same period. While we don’t claim to get everything right every time, we continue to be recognised for the service we offer, recently winning Best Airline 2022 at the News UK Travel Awards and nine Business Traveller Awards over the past two years.
"Our customers tell us they appreciate being able to choose from a range of cabins, flying to and from central airports at convenient times of the day, plus our investment in new aircraft, new seating, WiFi, new menus, the complimentary snacks and water we offer in our short-haul economy cabin, and the most generous hand baggage allowance of any UK airline.”
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