Use an ntlworld, blueyonder, virgin.net or Virgin Media email address? Changes to the service mean it is worth making a plan, but you do not have to work it out alone. JM Restart can help you understand your options, protect important messages and set up the email service that suits you.
You may prefer to keep your familiar address with Junara, choose a free personal mailbox, or move your business to email using its own domain. We can help with the practical work and explain the limitations before you commit.
Information checked: 22 October 2026. This article covers addresses ending in @ntlworld.com, @blueyonder.co.uk, @virgin.net and @virginmedia.com. Check the current official guidance and the notice for your own mailbox before acting.
What is happening to Virgin Media email?
Virgin Media is transferring management of its existing email services to Junara, part of Atmail. This affects current and former Virgin Media customers with the addresses above. The email change does not transfer your broadband to Junara. See the official Virgin Media announcement and Junara’s Virgin Media information.
- Keep the existing address: sign up with Junara under the offer available to your mailbox.
- Move to another provider: arrange a replacement address and preserve the messages and other information you need.
- Close an unwanted account: save anything important and update services linked to it first.
Check your own deadline, not someone else’s
There is no single closure date for every mailbox. Virgin Media says customers receive at least 45 days from their first communication to act. Notices are being sent in phases, so a friend or family member may have a different date. Use the deadline in your own notice; ask official support if you cannot find it.
| Stage | What it means | Sensible next step |
|---|---|---|
| Before your deadline | Time to complete your chosen option. | Allow time for access problems, backups and account updates. |
| Deadline missed | Junara says a suspended account can be reactivated by signing up within 120 days after the deadline. | Contact official support promptly. Do not rely on continued access. |
| Recovery window ends | Junara says the account and data are permanently deleted if no action is taken. | Preserve what you need before access is lost. |
These stages describe Junara’s published deadline policy, not the status of your individual account. A sign-in fault does not automatically mean that you missed the deadline.
If you want to keep your existing address
Junara is the route offered for retaining the legacy address. Moving to an unrelated provider normally means choosing a different address; copying your messages does not move ownership of Virgin Media’s email domain.
Review your mailbox’s introductory offer, eventual subscription, storage and renewal terms before accepting. Eligible current Virgin customers may receive an introductory period; that does not mean the service will remain free indefinitely. We have not quoted a universal price because the applicable offer needs checking for each account.
Junara says signup and transfer are separate stages. Keep using working email settings while awaiting its completion notice. Existing email apps should continue to work; webmail moves to Junara after transfer. The password already saved in an app can differ from the new webmail password, so do not replace a working saved password simply to make them match.
Free email options for home users
If you are happy to change address, a free personal service may be sufficient. Choose around the devices, apps, storage and account-recovery options you actually need. Free services have limits and terms; paid extras may be offered.
| Service | Why consider it? | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Outlook.com | A free personal email account with calendar and contacts. | Outlook.com is the mailbox service; Outlook is also the name of several apps. Desktop app rights and features vary. |
| Gmail | A personal Google mailbox, useful if you already use Google’s services. | Personal Gmail is different from a managed Google Workspace business account. Check storage across the services you use. |
| Proton Mail | A privacy-focused service with a free personal plan. | Check your preferred apps before moving. The free plan does not include Proton Mail Bridge for desktop email clients. |
Proton and existing email apps: Proton Mail Bridge requires a paid Proton Mail plan and runs on supported desktop systems, not mobile devices. If you want to keep Outlook, Thunderbird or Apple Mail, let us check the particular app, platform and plan first rather than assume ordinary mailbox settings will work.
A free mailbox does not mean JM Restart’s setup, migration or ongoing assistance is free. We agree our work and any applicable charges with you beforehand.
Business email JM Restart can supply and support
If your business relies on an old broadband-provider address, this is an opportunity to review it. An address using a domain your business controls gives you a more consistent identity and can make a future hosting move possible without changing that address, provided you retain the domain and arrange the new service correctly.
| Option | Suitable starting point | Scope to agree |
|---|---|---|
| JM Restart cPanel-based email hosting | Domain-based mailboxes with webmail and compatible email apps, where straightforward email hosting meets the need. | Mailbox capacity, backups, security, app setup and support. cPanel is the hosting control panel, not a Microsoft 365-style collaboration suite. |
| Microsoft 365 business email | A plan with Exchange Online for business email, calendars and contacts, with wider Microsoft tools where licensed. | The right plan, shared access, security, migration and support. Installed desktop Office apps are not included in every plan. |
| Google Workspace | Managed business Gmail using your own domain, alongside the collaboration tools included in the selected edition. | Edition, storage, user administration, app compatibility, migration and ongoing support. |
We can help with domains and the routing settings that direct email to the correct provider. For the wider service, see our business email and domain support and Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace services. Capacity, licensing, labour, independent backup and ongoing management are agreed for your requirements, rather than assumed to be included.
What needs moving besides the inbox?
Changing email involves more than creating a new account. Messages, local archives, contacts, calendars, rules, signatures and shared access may need different transfer methods. We check what is available, what the destination supports and what should be retained as an archive.
Older setups using POP, or Post Office Protocol, can hold messages only on a computer rather than on the provider’s server. A provider-side transfer cannot copy a message that is no longer there. Do not delete an old Outlook profile, reset a device or remove mail accounts until any local-only messages have been checked and protected.
A practical plan for changing email address
- Review first. Identify each mailbox, its deadline, the devices using it, local archives and the accounts that depend on it.
- Prepare the destination. Set up the chosen mailbox, strong sign-in protection and recovery details you can access independently.
- Preserve and transfer agreed data. Save important messages and attachments, check the saved copies and agree how contacts, calendars and archives will be handled.
- Update important accounts. Prioritise password-reset and security-code addresses, then banking, shopping, utilities and other services. Contact details, login names and recovery addresses may be separate settings.
- Reconnect and test. Set up agreed computers, phones and tablets. Send to an independent mailbox, confirm receipt, reply and check the reply arrives. Review important folders, contacts and attachments too.
- Finish carefully. Tell contacts, update signatures and review remaining dependencies before agreeing closure of an old service. Keep usable backups for the agreed period.
Forwarding can be convenient during an overlap, if available, but it is not a permanent replacement for updating your address. Do not assume it will continue after the old mailbox closes. Downloading messages does not keep the old address active, and no migration can guarantee recovery of data already permanently deleted by a provider.
Stay safe during the change
Use a known official website to check notices and offers. Virgin Media says its emails about this change will not contain clickable signup links. Be cautious of unexpected requests for payment, remote access or verification codes. JM Restart does not need you to put passwords, authentication codes or payment-card details into an ordinary email or enquiry form.
We can help configure suitable multi-factor authentication, which adds a sign-in check beyond the password, and sensible recovery information. See our passwords, MFA and passkeys guide. If you need remote assistance, our remote-support safety guidance explains what to check before allowing access.
How JM Restart can help
We support home users and businesses with email setup, troubleshooting, agreed migrations and device configuration. That includes Outlook, Apple Mail, eM Client and Thunderbird where compatible with the chosen service. We can review the notice with you, compare options, identify local-only data, plan the move and check that sending and receiving work afterwards.
You can ask us to handle the agreed technical work instead of attempting it yourself. We explain the likely scope, access requirements and limitations first, and keep you informed if the investigation reveals something that changes the plan.
Junara controls its signup, billing and transfer process; Virgin Media remains the technical support route before transfer, and Junara afterwards. We can help you understand or coordinate an enquiry, but we are not claiming to be their appointed transfer provider, to control their deadlines or to bypass account verification.
When enquiring, tell us your current provider, whether you want to keep the address, the stated deadline and which devices you use. You do not need to choose the replacement service before speaking to us.
