Fashionable plane, comfy seats and unflappably nice flight attendants.
These are components many rankings take into account in figuring out the world’s greatest airways.
However they overlook a vital ingredient, in line with the passenger rights firm AirHelp — how airways deal with clients when issues happen.
“We believe that an airline should be assessed not just by how they treat their passengers during business as usual, but also by the consideration they show customers when things go wrong,” the report said.
To compile its annual “AirHelp Score,” the group evaluated 83 airways based mostly on punctuality, buyer opinions, and the way effectively they deal with clients’ compensation claims.
Every issue was weighted equally within the scoring, stated Tomasz Pawliszyn, CEO at AirHelp.
The perfect and worst airways of 2023
Based mostly on information from Jan. 1 to Sept. 30 2023, these are the airways that topped the 2023 AirHelp Score:
1. Qatar Airways – 8.38
2. Eurowings – 8.27
3. LOT Polish Airways – 8.11
4. Etihad Airways and All Nippon Airways – 8.09 (tie)
6. Austrian Airways – 8.07
7. American Airways – 7.97
8. China Airways – 7.92
9. Wideroe – 7.89
10. United Airways – 7.88
Qatar Airways has topped each “AirHelp Score” rating since 2015 — however one. In 2016, the Doha-based airline fell to No. 2, behind Singapore Airways.
Thiago Prudencio | Sopa Photographs | Lightrocket | Getty Photographs
The ten lowest-scoring airways on AirHelp’s 2023 checklist are:
1. Tunisair – 4.12
2. British Airways – 5.03
3. Frontier Airways and Pegasus Airways – 5.18 (tie)
5. Czech Airways – 5.20
6. Air Canada – 5.68
7. Spirit – 5.69
8. TAROM and Azores Airways – 5.71 (tie)
10. Air Austral – 5.77
Qatar Airways has topped each “AirHelp Score” rating since 2015 — however one. In 2016, the Doha-based airline fell to No. 2, behind Singapore Airways. In 2022, it tied for the No. 1. spot with Etihad Airways, Pawliszyn informed CNBC Journey.
The 2023 full checklist may be discovered at AirHelp’s website.
Greatest and worst airways for passenger claims
The 5 airways that scored the best on compensation declare processing alone — which evaluates how airways deal with claims (“Do they ignore or wrongfully reject claims?”) in addition to response and payout instances, are:
- China Airways and Brussels Airways – 8.2 (tie)
- United Airways, SAS Scandinavian Airways and airBaltic – 8.1 (tie)
Stranded passengers crowd an airline counter at Changshui Worldwide Airport in Kunming, China on Jan. 4, 2013.
Str | Afp | Getty Photographs
These faring the worst by way of claims decision are:
- British Airways – 1
- Gulf Air – 1.4
- Czech Airways, Aircalin and Vietnam Airways – 1.7 (tie)
British Airways might have positioned final on account of being understaffed, stated Pawliszyn.
“As one of the largest and most popular airlines, they probably handle a large load of claims,” he stated.
In response to CNBC Journey’s request for remark, British Airways said: “We’re working hard to improve our response times … We’ve recruited an extra 1,500 new colleagues to help and introduced new automated technology to resolve easier claims faster, with the vast majority of cases resolved within seven weeks.
The airline added that more than half of outstanding cases relate to EU compensation claims which take time, due to checks that must be performed.
Top airlines in other categories
Highest on-time scores: Eurowings and Oman Air
Highest customer review scores: All Nippon Airways, Garuda Indonesia and Emirates
Singapore Airlines, which tops most major airline rankings, came in at No. 26 on the list, dragged down by a claim processing score of 5.4. Another highly regarded airline, Emirates, ranked No. 24 on the list for the same reason.
Claims processing is ‘crucial’
AirHelp told CNBC it uses its own data to monitor how well airlines process customer claims for compensation.
The organization “helps passengers declare compensation following delayed or cancelled flights underneath a number of worldwide air passenger rights rules together with EC 261 in Europe and ANAC 400 in Brazil,” he said.
“Examples the place a passenger might be able to make a declare are flights on a European airline the place the passenger arrived over three hours late at their vacation spot, or a flight that was canceled by the airline lower than two weeks earlier than departure.”
He said claims processing is critical because it directly impacts passenger satisfaction and an airline’s overall operational efficiency.
“Swift resolutions over claims like misplaced baggage, flight disruptions, or different inconveniences may stop passengers from deciding on one other airline for his or her future journey plans,” said Pawliszyn. “It is essential for sustaining a optimistic fame and buyer loyalty.”
