I guess the fact the the actual incident occurred in the first instance, which gave the pax opportunity to complain would be more damaging to the airlines image, would'nt you agree?
Unfortunately things break, technology fails and parts wear out. Ryanair's fleet is one of the youngest in Europe and of all the many things that they are accused of, I've yet to hear any aimed at poor maintenance standards. It's more than likely that this incident could have happend to any operator.