Why Ryanair is Frequently Sued in Various Countries

Since yesterday, the entry of Ryanair into Armenia has been a hot topic on the internet. The founder of Ryanair, Tony Ryan, is one of the richest people in Ireland, and the airline is named using the initials of his last name. Ryan is known among Irish businessmen as a very harsh and stingy individual.

The airline operates flights using Boeing 737 aircraft. Although the owner claims that using only this type of aircraft is largely due to high safety guarantees, it is noted that Ryan is unwilling to spend additional money on specialists to maintain the aircraft's technical condition. In many cases, this would require a large number of various specialists, whereas in this case, he can maintain skilled specialists for just one type of aircraft.

Every aspect is aimed at saving costs. The airline is so frugal that passengers are required to print their tickets themselves and approach the check-in desk; if the ticket is not printed, they must pay a fine of 40-50 euros to board the plane. Ryanair does not land at any major airports since it is too expensive; the management prefers smaller, cheaper airports that are further away from large cities. The baggage size is also very small—15% smaller than that of other airlines—while excess baggage costs more than with others.

Passengers are only allowed one piece of luggage; if a woman has a purse and a suitcase, the purse must fit inside the suitcase. Alongside all this, the company often runs promotions to acquire more customers. For example, last year, the airline sold 1,000,000 tickets to all destinations from Ukraine, with a one-way ticket costing only 13 euros. This amount included the ticket price and baggage transport. Citizens had to pay extra for additional baggage, food on the aircraft, and other services.

The company's owner is so frugal that he even wanted to make using the aircraft's restroom a paid service.

Ryanair has been involved in several lawsuits, and in 2017, the airline lost a court case. The airline attempted to have its crews resolve disputes in Irish courts while operating outside of Ireland, but the court denied the claim. In 2017, Ryanair won three lawsuits against Ukrainian International Airlines, which had filed a court request to annul a contract under which the company was scheduled to operate flights from Kyiv and sought over 20 million hryvnias in compensation for financial damages.

The same court also rejected another claim from Ukrainian International Airlines regarding the agreements between Ukrainian International Airlines, Ryanair, and Lviv Airport. Ukrainian International Airlines demanded that the court invalidate the airport service contract established between the airport and the European low-cost carrier, as well as annul the ministry's authorization for signing the agreement and requested a copy of the contract from Lviv Airport. According to the airline's lawyers, the airport service contract contained discriminatory clauses, which violated existing Ukrainian legislation, providing grounds for its annulment. This claim was also dismissed.

The third claim by the Ukrainian carrier concerned the illegal recognition of the actions of the agency that signed the March 15, 2017, agreement with Ryanair, which outlined the airport service conditions in Boryspil. In this claim, the company also requested that the court obligate Ryanair to provide inaccessible benefits (discounts, privileges, and other advantages) and support operations.

The last legal process against Ryanair concluded on September 4, 2019. The Dutch court ruled that Ryanair's new regulation, which limited passengers' rights to file claims for flight delays, was unlawful. With this provision, passengers who had wished to cancel or change an already purchased ticket were deprived of compensation. Very few had the opportunity for reimbursement, who would present valid reasons. However, almost all applications were dismissed under unlawful grounds.