Ryanair

Complaints & Reviews on USAComplaints

USAComplaints currently maintains 8 historical complaints about Ryanair, published between 2008 and 2013. No approved complaints have been published on this site during the last three years. For a current reputation snapshot, see the independent sources below.

• In adequate information about check in - Online Checking, savings, and bill payPublished Sep 28, 2013 · Historical consumer allegation
• Consumer ReportPublished Oct 8, 2012 · Historical consumer allegation
• Consumer ReportPublished Aug 13, 2012 · Historical consumer allegation
• Consumer ReportPublished Aug 5, 2012 · Historical consumer allegation
• Voucher partially redeemed cannot be reused DublinPublished Jan 5, 2011 · Historical consumer allegation
• Air lines you shold not flyPublished Oct 25, 2010 · Historical consumer allegation
• Company tricks you into buying "extra" luggage but does requires it to weigh Zero Kilos! DublinPublished Sep 10, 2008 · Historical consumer allegation
• Never pay for delays, lost bagage, delayed bagagePublished Feb 28, 2008 · Historical consumer allegation

Complaint Themes

Each tag reflects a complaint's single primary theme (not every angle it raised), and complaints outside any problem theme — a positive report, or one later retracted by its author — aren't tagged. Counts may total less than the full complaint count above.

Independent Sources

Shown for context — not merged with USAComplaints' own numbers.

Contacts

• Official website: https://www.ryanair.com/
• Help Centre: Contact Us: https://help.ryanair.com/hc/en-gb/sections/12504616835857

Locations

Ryanair complaints: refunds, EU261 claims, baggage and fees - what to do

This page was checked on 2026-10-20. Ryanair is an Irish airline: its General Terms & Conditions of Carriage (effective 25 June 2026) are issued by Ryanair DAC, Swords, County Dublin, and say they are governed by the laws of Ireland, with the passenger entitled to bring a claim in the passenger's local court (with an exception for EU Regulation 261/2004 claims and business claims, see clause 2.3). Its liability terms apply EU rules for community air carriers and the Montreal Convention 1999. This page does not describe U.S. Department of Transportation procedures because we did not verify that they apply to Ryanair's flights.

Where to start. Keep the booking reference, receipts, boarding passes and screenshots. Ryanair's Help Centre "Contact Us" page offers chat (the chat bot is called Molli) and phone options; the numbers sit in expandable panels that we did not read, so use that page for the current ones.

Refunds. Clause 10.1 of the terms says: "Except where clauses 4.2, 10.2, 10.3 and 10.4 of these terms apply, all amounts you pay for flights operated by us (including amounts for optional services) are non-refundable." Clause 10.2 provides a refund of the fare plus associated taxes, fees and charges where Ryanair gives a refund under clause 9.2 (cancellation or significant delay); clause 10.3 provides Travel Credit if an immediate family member who is not travelling with you passes away within 10 days prior to your booked flight, claimed before the date of the flight with a copy of the death certificate. Clause 10.4 says that if someone on your booking passes away within 10 days prior to the date of travel, Ryanair may refund the air fare of the deceased passenger (see the terms for the full list).

Cancelled or delayed flights (EU261). The EU's Your Europe page (last checked 21/09/2026) says EU rules apply, among other cases, to flights within the EU on any airline and to flights departing the EU for a non-EU country, and that you "should always send your complaint to the airline first"; if there is no reply within 2 months or you are unsatisfied, you can complain to the national authority in the country where the incident happened. Compensation tiers shown there are 250, 400 or 600 euros depending on distance, and none is due where extraordinary circumstances apply. Ryanair's clause 15.2.2 asks passengers to submit EU261 claims to Ryanair directly and allow 14 days (or the period set by law, if shorter) before engaging a third party, and says claims must include bank details of the passenger.

Baggage. Regulation 1.6 (Ryanair's regulations, published with the General Terms) says damaged baggage must be reported at the airport straight away with a claim to Ryanair within seven days, and lost baggage reported at the airport straight away with a claim within 21 days; Article 15.1.2 says to write within seven days of getting baggage for loss or damage and within twenty-one days for delayed baggage. Under Article 14.4.4 of the terms and Regulation 1.7, liability for loss of or damage to baggage is limited to 1,519 SDR for each piece of baggage, and for delayed baggage to 1,519 SDR for each passenger; Regulation 1.7 adds that a special declaration of interest in delivery, with a fee, can raise the limit for checked-in luggage. Regulation 1.9 sets a two-year limit for claims.

Fees quoted in Ryanair's regulations 3.2 and 3.4 (terms effective 25 June 2026). One small carry-on bag is included (40 x 30 x 20 cm); a 10kg Check-in Bag bought at the airport bag drop or the boarding gate is shown as €/£35.99 - €/£ 60.00; an oversized carry-on bag refused at the gate or placed in the hold is shown as €/£70.00 - €/£ 75.00; excess baggage is €13/£13 per kilogram over the allowance. Fees change, so read the table of fees in the booking flow.

Regulator and court actions against Ryanair in Europe (as of 2026-10-20)

The items below come from different countries, laws and procedures. They are listed separately and are not added together. Each fine or order below is what the authority decided or alleged; Ryanair disputes them as noted.

Spain (consumer law). Ryanair's Form 20-F (filed 2026-06-22) says that in November 2024 the Spanish Minister of Consumer Affairs imposed fines of approximately €170m on several airlines, including €107m on Ryanair, and ordered discontinuation of the cabin baggage and other customer policies (the Spanish consumer centre bulletin describes the sanctions as concerning a supplement for carrying cabin hand luggage and a charge for choosing a seat when travelling with children or dependent persons); that Ryanair and others appealed to Spanish courts and obtained a suspension of the order and fines, subject to a bank guarantee, so the decision is "currently not enforceable"; and that in October 2025 the European Commission opened an infringement procedure against Spain over charges for larger cabin bags and also found that the Minister's decisions infringe EU law. A December 2024 bulletin of the Spanish consumer centre network states that the ministry signed sanctions against Ryanair, Vueling, Easyjet, Norwegian and Volotea totalling about €179 million, classed as "muy graves" infringements; that bulletin does not give a per-airline amount. The two totals differ and we have not reconciled them.

Italy (competition law). The Italian competition authority's press release of 23 December 2025 says it fined Ryanair DAC, jointly and severally with Ryanair Holdings plc, 255,761,692 euros for abuse of a dominant position toward online and traditional travel agencies selling Ryanair flights, for conduct beginning in April 2023 and continuing at least until April 2025. Ryanair's 20-F says it believes the decision has no merit and has appealed to the Administrative Tribunal of Lazio. The same 20-F says the AGCM separately imposed a fine of approximately €1.3m in July 2025 for allegedly incomplete answers (appealed), and that the Italian Council of State in May 2026 overturned an earlier €4.2m AGCM fine concerning Covid-era refunds and a promotion. The decision is under competition law; the authority's press release describes measures aimed at passengers who booked through travel agencies (facial-recognition verification, and at the end of 2023 blocked booking attempts by travel agencies) and says the conduct reduced the quality and range of tourism services available to consumers. Ryanair has appealed.

Austria (consumer law, association action). A press release of the Austrian Consumer Information Association (VKI) dated 29 June 2026 says the Supreme Court (OGH) confirmed that 14 of 15 fee clauses in Ryanair DAC's terms challenged in a collective action were inadmissible, including a 55 euro airport check-in fee, a 25 euro infant fee and a 15 euro boarding-card fee. The release does not state Ryanair's position, and it concerns the terms as used in Austria. The release also says consumers who paid fees under these or equivalent clauses can reclaim them, and that the VKI offers a template letter on its website (verbraucherrecht.at); that statement is VKI's and is limited to the Austrian ruling.

United Kingdom (consumer law, open). The Competition and Markets Authority opened a case on 10 June 2026 into Ryanair UK Limited and Ryanair DAC concerning a potentially unfair contract term requiring consumers travelling with a child to pay a mandatory fee to sit next to that child, and whether that fee is shown in the total price at the start of booking. The CMA page states that no finding has been made and that it should not be assumed Ryanair has infringed consumer law. It adds that Ryanair issued proceedings in the Administrative Court on 5 August 2026 seeking permission to judicially review the legality of the CMA's information notices (interim relief was applied for on 6 August and refused on 10 August 2026), and that a 'rolled up' hearing is listed for 24 to 26 November 2026. On 30 September 2026 the CMA's Procedural Complaints Adjudicator published a decision concluding that a complaint by Ryanair fell outside the adjudicator's remit. The case page (last updated 30 September 2026) gives the next case update as December 2026.

Ireland (data protection, ongoing). The 20-F says the Irish Data Protection Commission launched an inquiry in October 2024 into Ryanair's booking verification process; the 20-F says the inquiry relates to Ryanair's requirement that passengers verify their details where bookings raise suspicions that contact or payment details were withheld from Ryanair by an unauthorized intermediary and replaced with single-use (virtual) details. Ryanair says the process is designed to ensure compliance with safety and security protocols and complies with the GDPR; the inquiry is ongoing.

Who operates Ryanair

Ryanair's terms of carriage are issued by Ryanair DAC (a designated activity company) at Ryanair Dublin Office, Airside Business Park, Swords, Co Dublin, Ireland. The parent filing with the U.S. SEC is Ryanair Holdings plc, incorporated in the Republic of Ireland, whose American Depositary Shares (RYAAY, each representing two ordinary shares) are registered on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC; its latest Form 20-F was filed on 2026-06-22. The Italian authority's press release calls Ryanair Holdings plc the parent company of Ryanair DAC.

The terms list other airlines of the Ryanair Group as Ryanair Sun (Buzz), Ryanair UK, Laudamotion and Malta Air, and mention flights operated by Lauda Europe. Which Ryanair Group airline operates a given flight is stated on the booking; the General Terms are issued by Ryanair DAC.

Ryanair sells tickets through ryanair.com and its app. The terms say free check-in at the airport applies only to certain Plus and Flexi Plus bookings made through the official website or app before 14 August 2025 and expressly excludes bookings through online travel agents. Ryanair's 20-F describes its policy of objecting to unauthorised resale by online travel agents ("screen scraping") and says it permits some price-comparison and travel-agent access under licence; Ryanair says the policy benefits consumers, while the Italian authority found the conduct abusive (see regulator actions).

Complaint record: Trustpilot, BBB search and this site's archive

Trustpilot (profile for Ryanair, www.ryanair.com), as displayed on 2026-10-20: TrustScore 1.3 from 33,247 reviews, "Unclaimed profile", with the notice that Trustpilot does not fact-check reviews. This number is a snapshot of one platform and is not combined with any other figure here.

BBB. A search of bbb.org for "Ryanair" with the United States as the location, run on 2026-10-20, returned 22 results; the first results page did not show a listing for the airline. This does not establish that no BBB file exists for Ryanair in another country.

This site's archive. We link 9 approved archive posts dated 2008 to 2013: 8 name Ryanair as the subject and 1 (2013) names Ryanair together with a third-party cashback subscription called Complete Savings. They are unverified accounts by the people who wrote them; two name flights from London Stansted to other European cities and most give no route. By keyword, 3 posts concern baggage, check-in or airport fees, 3 concern unexpected card charges, a name-correction fee or voucher terms, and 2 concern missed flights, airport handling or staff conduct. One post that was machine-garbled text was excluded.

Ryanair's response to these individual posts is not on file. Posts are allegations, not findings.

Court case involving Ryanair in the United States

The only U.S. case reviewed for this page is Ryanair DAC v. Booking.com B.V., U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, No. 1:20-cv-01191. Ryanair is the plaintiff, and the case concerns access to Ryanair's website by online travel agents under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, not consumer claims against Ryanair. Filed 4 September 2020 against five defendants; claims against KAYAK were dismissed with prejudice on 18 July 2024. A jury found for Ryanair on two counts against Booking.com and awarded $5,000 as actual economic harm. In a memorandum opinion signed 22 January 2025 the court granted Booking.com's renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law. An amended judgment signed 31 January 2025 (ECF 518) says Booking.com was found not to have violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and that judgment was entered for Booking.com on all CFAA claims; it also says the jury found Ryanair not liable on any of Booking.com's counterclaims and that the judgment previously entered for Ryanair on those counterclaims remains. Ryanair filed a notice of appeal (Third Circuit No. 25-1374); the district docket lists a Third Circuit order terminating the appeal on 26 August 2025, and the district court case is shown terminated on 2 October 2025. We could not open the Third Circuit docket itself, so the basis of the appeal's termination is not stated here. Ryanair's 20-F says the case was "ultimately settled" with an agreement giving the Booking Holdings group access to Ryanair's distribution tools; the terms are not public in the documents we read.

We did not review other U.S. dockets involving Ryanair.

Is Ryanair Legitimate?

Ryanair DAC, Airside Business Park, Swords, County Dublin, issues the airline's General Terms & Conditions of Carriage (effective 25 June 2026). Its parent, Ryanair Holdings plc, is registered in the Republic of Ireland and files annual reports on Form 20-F with the U.S. SEC (latest filed 2026-06-22), with American Depositary Shares on Nasdaq as RYAAY.

The record on this page also contains regulator and court actions in Spain, Italy, Austria and the United Kingdom, which Ryanair disputes or has appealed, and Trustpilot shows 1.3 from 33,247 reviews as displayed on 2026-10-20. We do not give Ryanair a score or a verdict; read the sections above and the primary sources linked on this page.

Court & Public Records

Related Complaints

Names this company in a role other than the primary subject — not necessarily current or complete.

• Named as an affiliate: Consumer Report

Company Relationships

• Owned by: Ryanair Holdings plc
• Affiliated with: Ryanair UK
• Affiliated with: Malta Air
• Affiliated with: Laudamotion

Frequently Asked Questions