Ryanair has doubled down on its decision not to issue a refund for a passenger injured while risking his life to stop a mass stabbing assailant. Stephen Crean, 61, suffered stab wounds as he fought a knife-wielding man attacking passengers on a train, leaving his unable to catch his Ryanair flight to Austria.
The Irish ultra-low-cost carrier has responded to the public outrage, insisting that all of its fares are non-refundable and advising customers to pay for travel insurance. However, many are calling on the airline to make an exceptional case for Crean.
Train Stabbing Hero Refused Ryanair Refund
As reported by Nottinghamshire Live, Crean was unable to catch his flight after sustaining injuries while confronting an assailant during a mass stabbing, but this was not enough to get a refund from the Irish carrier. The Ryanair customer was booked to fly with the airline to Austria to watch football team Nottingham Forest on Wednesday, but got caught up in a high-profile mass stabbing event on a train in Cambridgeshire on November 1.
Crean is said to have stood up to the attacker while other passengers fled to safety, sustaining several wounds to his hand, back and head. The lifelong Forest fan was on the train returning from a trip to Old Trafford to watch his team take on Manchester United. There have even been calls for Crean to receive a George Cross medal for his brave actions, giving fellow passengers vital seconds to escape.
In a statement, Ryanair said,
“All Ryanair air fares are non-refundable, which is why we strongly recommend passengers take out travel insurance in order to protect themselves if they can’t travel.”
Ryanair’s Refund Policy
Ryanair maintains a strict refund policy, selling all of its tickets as non-refundable. While it does have a “Flexi Plus” option when booking fares, this doesn’t include a different refund policy, as is often the case with other airlines selling more convenient ticket bundles. This is in line with other budget carriers, with easyJet and Wizz Air offering standard fares that are typically eligible for a full refund (minus a cancellation fee) if canceled within 24 hours of booking, but non-refundable thereafter.
Instead, Ryanair Flexi Plus passengers are entitled to additional baggage allowances, priority boarding and flexibility to change their flight at no extra change fee. The airline also has special circumstances where it will issue a refund in travel credits, such as the death of an immediate family member within 10 days of travel.
However, the airline states clearly on its website that it does not offer refunds or travel credit to passengers who are unable to travel due to serious illness. Refunds are paid out in situations where Ryanair cancels a flight, or if a flight is delayed by over five hours. Under EU Regulation 261/2004, passengers are only entitled to compensation when flights are canceled or delayed, but not for personal emergencies.
No-Nonsense Reputation
Ryanair has won both fans and enemies for its robust approach to customer service. Its outspoken chief executive, Michael O’Leary, has been at the forefront of this approach and long defended its tough policies. The airline’s social media accounts are also notoriously unapologetic, responding to customer complaints with humorous quips and offhand remarks.
One high-profile incident from August 2023 demonstrated Ryanair’s strict enforcement of its policies after an elderly couple were charged £110 ($145) after mistakenly printing their return flight boarding passes, not their outbound boarding passes. The airline also recently came under fire for its plan to remove physical boarding passes entirely in favor of digital passes, a move that could alienate a sizable portion of its customer base.
While there is still a chance the Irish carrier does a U-turn owing to the exceptional circumstances, if there was ever an airline to stick to its own rules and ignore the uproar, it would be Ryanair.
