The two carriers were ranked bottom of consumer group Which?’s annual survey of short-haul airlines.

Which? surveyed more than 1,300 passengers for their experiences of flying short-haul since November 2019, covering everything from boarding and cabin cleanliness to customer service and value for money.

The group also asked more than 1,100 passengers who suffered flight disruption how satisfied they were with how their airline handled the issue.

Budget carrier Ryanair received an overall customer score of 55% and a score of just 47% for refund satisfaction, with one-in-five respondents claiming it took them more than a month to get a refund. One customer said: "Ryanair is the most awkward airline to deal with I’ve ever come across. It seems to be proud of being difficult."

When asked if there was an airline they would never fly with, three-quarters (74%) of respondents said Ryanair. The airline also scored no more than two stars (out of five) for any of the measures featuring in the main customer satisfaction survey with the exception of value for money, where it scored three stars.

Meanwhile, BA came second from bottom with an overall customer score of 63%, just behind Tui Airways, but with a much lower refund satisfaction score. 

Passengers reported spending hours on hold "only to be hung up on" or "passed endlessly" between different departments. BA chief executive Sean Doyle this week wrote to the airline’s Executive Club members promising to make sorting out issues with the carrier’s call centre his "number one priority" for the year.

One passenger described BA as "a budget-style airline at premium prices", although on a more positive note for BA, its cabins ranked as the joint cleanest alongside KLM and Jet2.com. 

Jet2 came top overall and earned a Which? Recommended Provider endorsement. Its record on delivering refunds was the best of the bunch with more than eight in 10 (84%) respondents telling Which? they were satisfied with the outcome when their flight was disrupted because of Covid.

‘New depths’

Which? Travel editor Rory Boland said that while Ryanair’s "consistently terrible customer service" had made it a fixture among the worst performers in Which?’s surveys for many years, the airline had "plumbed new depths" with its handling of Covid refunds.

"BA’s reputation also deservedly took a battering when it took a hard line on refunds for passengers who could not travel because they followed government health guidance," he said. "Many passengers will not forget how they were treated by companies during the pandemic."

In response to the survey, BA said it was "proud" to be "the first UK airline to offer customers the flexibility to amend their plans at the beginning of the pandemic", by providing vouchers they can use up to September 2023. 

"If we cancel a flight, we always contact customers to offer a range of options including a full refund," the carrier’s statement continued. "We’ve issued more than 4.2 million refunds and have dealt with more than 3.3 million voucher requests to date. 

"However, we know we can do better and we’re working hard behind the scenes, upgrading our phone systems and recruiting more people to deliver a better and faster customer experience that we know our customers deserve. We never take our customers’ loyalty for granted and appreciate their patience as our teams work around the clock to support them."

Ryanair did not respond to Which?’s request for comment.