STAFF at a business based in Letchworth GC have been left frustrated and angered after a technical issue stopped them from sending or receiving any emails.

The issue arose after communications provider BT failed to notify the company of a new system being introduced.

Forty staff members at GEM Estate Management Limited have had their emails disabled for over a week while BT made changes in a bid to reduce the amount of spam the company receives.

Gem Estate Management IT manager, Mark Burchett, said staff were not told of the changes.

He said: “The issue began during last Tuesday when we realised we weren’t getting the normal amount of emails that we normally receive.

“I flagged it up with BT and literally spent two days on the phone with them but got nowhere.”

Mr Burchett, who has been with the company for the past nine and a half years, said he had never experienced anything like this before and it had been a huge inconvenience to both staff and customers.

“The frustrating part of it is the lack of time we were given to prepare for the changes. It doesn’t matter what you face in life, it’s not as bad as long as you have time to prepare for it,” he said.

The company, which looks after communal affairs in blocks of flats or estates where a residents’ association or a management company has been formed, uses emails for a variety reasons but mainly to send contracts to their customers.

A spokesman for BT said: “We’re sorry for the problems that have been experienced, and are in contact with Mr Burchett on this matter.

“We’re urgently investigating the cause of the problem and full circumstances surrounding this and will be keeping Mr Burchett updated on progress.”