1and1 suffers technical failures

Webhosting company 1and1 suffered a series of technical problems this week that has left customers unable to receive emails.

The problems began on Monday, and although 1and1 claimed to have fixed the original issue, serious problems are still ongoing.

Customers of the webhosting company have been desperately trying to find out more information in online communities on how to access any form of normal service.

However, at present, they remain frustrated and unable to properly access emails through the week.

1and1 is a company with a chequered reputation - although they have aggressively marketed themselves and pushed hard on delivering low price, the result has been low quality of service when required.

Complaints about customer support are common, with telephone support offering little useful help, while support emails can be sent without being answered at all.

Meanwhile, we can only hope that 1and1 is able to restore at least a basic level of service for affected customers, for their sake.

ADDED: 1and1 have provided Platinax with the following statement on issues so far:

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Following an important update to our mail server software and the subsequent restart of the mail servers, there have unfortunately been delays in the delivery of incoming email to 1&1 mail boxes.

Email messages are stored safely in a queue, but are subject to delay.

Whilst on Thursday morning there was no delay, as of 11am today, Friday, there is an average mail delivery delay of 2 hours. Spam mails are being delivered with a lower priority and hence remain longer in the mail queue.

Many email users waiting for delayed mails currently access their mailboxes at a high frequency. Thus, in peak times there may also be delays in connecting to Inboxes.

The SMTP service (outgoing mail) is not affected and runs without delay.

Due to planned updates of software and hardware systems, some disruptions to email delivery to Inboxes may continue throughout today, Friday 19 January.

The delay in incoming emails will decrease as full service is gradually restored and emails are delivered.

We sincerely apologise to our customers for any inconvenience caused due to the queuing of emails and thank them for their co-operation and understanding while we continue to resolve these issues. As always, customers who would like to discuss any concerns are kindly asked to contact 1&1’s UK Complaints Dept.

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