This budget carrier is the UK’s most complained-about airline

Wizz Air received the most complaints from UK passengers among popular airlines, data has revealed.

The Hungarian low-cost airline had the most complaint cases opened with the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) from the second quarter of 2024 to the first quarter of 2025.

The CAA’s latest report shows that during this period there were more than 43,000 complaints made by customers to its approved alternative dispute resolution (ADR) providers.

Of these complaints, more than 10,500 were related to Wizz Air, which equates to 918 complaints per million passengers.

While the data does not specify the details of customer issues, categories include denied boarding, flight delays and flight cancellations.

Passengers can also complain about baggage problems, accessibility assistance and issues where passengers feel like they were treated unfairly and experienced financial harm as a result.

However, not all complaints lead to a decision or settlement and can be rejected, such as if the complaint was about a flight which did not operate in or out of the UK or if the consumer did not provide the airline sufficient time to reply to their complaint.

The airline did, however, have a 47 per cent uphold rate, which is the proportion of complaints either settled by the airline or decided in favour of the passenger by the ADR provider.

Wizz Air paid out over £1.4m to passengers, with an average award of £651 per case.

In comparison, British Airways, which only had 192 complaints per million passengers, had an larger uphold rate of 83 per cent, which saw the airline paying out the most among other airlines: some £6.2m, with an average award of £837.

Ryanair had the second-largest amount of cases at just over 10,000, equating to 188 complaints per million passengers.

The Irish budget airline also had a very low uphold rate of 28 per cent, but still paid out more than Wizz Air, awarding over £1.8m at an average of £694 per case.

Reflecting on the CAA data, a Wizz Air spokesperson told The Independent that it is “fully committed” to strengthening its operations.

The airline’s response reads, in full:

“At Wizz Air, every minute matters and customers are at the heart of everything we do. Since 2024, we have made significant investments across every part of our operations, including our Customer First Compass initiative – a £12 billion framework launched in 2025 to ensure we deliver the best possible service for our customers. This investment is already delivering results.

“In 2025, our UK flight completion rate was 99.8 per cent – one of the best in the entire industry, while our on-time performance also improved by 14.23 per cent compared to 2024. As a result, in 2025 customer satisfaction ratio already increased by seven per cent point year-on-year.

“We recognise that disruption does occasionally occur, on many occasions due to factors outside of our control. We are focused on responding quickly and effectively when it does. Our automated Chatbot, Amelia AI, is available 24/7 to address most customers’ enquiries and needs.

“Our customer service agents are also available by phone, and customers who wish to submit a formal claim can do so easily via the Wizz Air website. The MyJourney feature in the Wizz Air app also provides passengers with real-time updates so they can stay informed and confident about their travel plans.

“The progress we have made reflects the sustained effort and investment dedicated to improving our service, which remains a daily focus. However, we recognise there is more to be done. We remain fully committed to strengthening our operations, reducing delays and cancellations, and ensuring fast, reliable support for our customers whenever disruption occurs.”

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