Virgin Media is closing its existing email service, meaning thousands of people who have used the same email address for years will need to decide whether to pay to keep it or switch to a free alternative.
The change affects Virgin Media, NTL and Blueyonder email addresses, including those still being used by former customers.
Virgin Media is moving its email service to a company called Junara. If you want to keep your existing address, you’ll need to sign up with the new provider.
But you don’t have to pay for an email account. You can switch to a free service such as Gmail or Outlook instead.
The important thing is to act before your deadline, otherwise you could lose access to important emails and accounts linked to your old address.
Which Virgin Media email addresses are affected?
The closure affects anyone with an email address ending in:
- @virginmedia.com
- @ntlworld.com
- @blueyonder.co.uk
- @virgin.net
This includes people who left Virgin Media years ago but continued using their old email address.
According to Virgin Media’s official announcement, customers have three choices: move to Junara, switch to another email provider or allow their old account to close.
Your broadband, TV and landline services aren’t affected by the email transfer.
How much will Junara cost?
If you want to keep your existing Virgin Media email address, Junara is the option being offered.
However, it won’t necessarily stay free.
Here’s what Virgin Media has confirmed:
- Current Virgin Media broadband, TV and landline customers can get their first 12 months with Junara free, subject to a 99p transfer fee.
- Customers who have previously told Virgin Media they need additional support will be offered 18 months free instead.
- Former customers who no longer have Virgin Media services will need to pay for a standard Junara plan.
After any free period ends, you’ll need to pay an ongoing subscription to keep using your email address.
Junara doesn’t publish one fixed price for everyone. Instead, you’ll need to enter and verify your email address during sign-up to see the plans and prices available to you. There’s no obligation to complete the sign-up.
There’s another catch if your household has several email addresses.
If you and your partner have separate inboxes, you may need to pay for both. Extra addresses that simply deliver emails to the same inbox, without forwarding being set up, can usually transfer without an additional charge.
Junara also says subscriptions renew automatically, and the amount of email storage you currently use could prevent you from choosing a cheaper plan.
You can check the full details in Junara’s Virgin Media FAQs.
Skint Dad says:
If you’ve been using the same email address for 20 years, paying to keep it might seem easier than changing everything.
And for some people, that convenience may be worth paying for.
But if you’re trying to cut household bills, it’s worth thinking about whether you really need another subscription.
A free email account means a bit of work changing your details now, but it could save you paying year after year for something you can get elsewhere without a monthly fee.
Before signing up, check the price after any free period ends, especially if you’re paying for more than one inbox.
When will Virgin Media email accounts close?
There isn’t one closure date for everyone.
Virgin Media began contacting affected customers in September 2026 and is sending notifications in stages.
You’ll have at least 45 days from your first notification to decide what to do.
If you don’t act by your deadline, your email account can be suspended.
There is then a further 120-day period when you can arrange to recover your account. This doesn’t mean you’ll still have normal access to your emails.
If you don’t transfer your account within that period, it will be permanently deleted, along with its contents.
If you’ve already missed your deadline and can’t access your mailbox, Virgin Media says you should contact its customer service team.
Check your inbox and junk folder for your notification. Your own deadline is the one that matters.
How to switch to a free email address
If you don’t want to pay Junara, you can move to a free email provider.
Two popular options are Gmail, from Google, and Outlook.com, from Microsoft.
Both offer free personal email accounts, and you can continue using them even if you change broadband companies.
Here’s what to do.
1. Set up a new email address
Visit the Gmail or Outlook.com website and follow the instructions to create an account.
Choose a strong password and switch on two-step verification, which adds an extra security check when someone tries to sign in.
Your email account is worth protecting. As our warning about hacked email and social media accounts explains, criminals can cause serious problems when they gain access to someone’s accounts.
Once you’ve created your new email address, send yourself a test message to check it’s working.
2. Save important emails and contacts
Go through your old Virgin Media inbox and look for anything you might need later.
That could include receipts, photographs, insurance documents, travel bookings or important messages.
You can forward individual emails to your new address, including any attachments.
If you have hundreds or thousands of messages, check whether your new email provider has a tool to import them. Not every service supports the same transfer options.
If you use Virgin Media webmail, you can also export your contacts by opening Address Book, selecting the menu and choosing Export, then CSV.
Virgin Media has instructions for saving emails, attachments and contacts if you need more help.
Make sure you’ve checked your saved emails and attachments before your old account closes.
3. Update your important online accounts
This is one of the most important steps, and it’s easy to overlook.
Your old email address could be linked to dozens of websites and services, including:
- Your bank and savings accounts
- HMRC and other government services
- Gas, electricity and water suppliers
- Insurance and pension accounts
- Amazon, eBay and other shopping websites
- Facebook and other social media
- Streaming services and subscriptions
Log in to each account through its official website or app and look for the option to change your email address.
Start with your banking and other important accounts.
Some websites send a confirmation code or password reset link to your existing email address. If that address stops working, changing your details later could become much harder.
One useful trick is to search your old inbox for words such as “welcome”, “account”, “receipt” and “password reset”. These can help you find services you’ve registered with over the years.
4. Tell people your email address has changed
Let friends, family and anyone else who regularly contacts you know your new address.
You could also set up an automatic reply on your old account while it’s still working, telling people you’ve moved.
Don’t rely on automatic forwarding to solve everything. Virgin Media warns that existing forwarding arrangements may stop working after a move to Junara, although Junara’s own guidance says forwarding settings are transferred.
If you’re relying on forwarding, check that it works rather than assuming your messages will arrive.
5. Check everything before your deadline
Before your Virgin Media account closes, make sure you’ve saved what you need and updated your important accounts.
It’s worth checking your new inbox over the following weeks to make sure you’re receiving messages from the companies you use.
What happens to accounts linked to your old email address?
Changing email providers won’t automatically update your details with other companies.
For example, if your Amazon account is registered with an @ntlworld.com address, it won’t automatically change when you open a Gmail account.
Your Amazon account won’t necessarily close, but you could miss order updates or struggle to reset your password.
The same applies to banking, shopping, social media and other services.
That’s why updating your account details is just as important as saving your old emails.
Can you keep your Virgin Media email address without paying?
Virgin Media hasn’t announced a free option for keeping your existing email address indefinitely.
If you want to continue using the same address, you’ll need to sign up with Junara under its available plans.
Junara says it will transfer your emails, contacts and other supported mailbox information when you move across.
You’ll need your existing email address, a payment method, a mobile phone to receive a security code and an authenticator app for secure sign-in.
If you prefer to use a free email provider, you’ll need to create a different address and move your important information across yourself.
Watch out for fake Virgin Media emails
Scammers could take advantage of the change by sending fake messages claiming your email account is about to close.
Virgin Media says its official emails about the change won’t contain clickable sign-up links. Instead, customers will be directed to its website for more information.
If you receive an unexpected email asking for passwords or payment details, don’t follow the links.
Go directly to Virgin Media’s official website to check what you need to do.
We’ve also tested a free scam checker that can help identify suspicious emails, texts and websites. However, a checker can’t guarantee that a message is genuine.
If you’re affected by the closure, start by finding your deadline. Then decide whether keeping your old address is worth paying for or whether it’s time to make the switch to a free one.
