This topic

Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 09:36:47 GMT

Hi, after spending a fruitless hour on Messages with BT yesterday, I'm hoping someone can help with this oddity.

A deceased family member had a BT email address, eg. joanne.bloggs@btinternet.com.

Upon her death, her spouse took over the BT billing and email accounts, but is still using the exact same email address.

In the Webmail interface, the Profile has been updated to show as the spouse's name, eg. Joe Bloggs. When an email is sent from Webmail, it correctly shows as coming from Joe Bloggs. So far, so good.

However, in the BT email app, the display name on the front screen, despite repeatedly being changed to Joe Bloggs, still keeps reverting to Joanne Bloggs. When an email is sent from the BT email app, the displayed 'from' name at the other end either shows as Joanne Bloggs or 'joanne.bloggs'. Very annoying!

Other than ensuring that emails are only sent from the Webmail interface, which rather defeats the object of having the BT email app, does anybody have any other suggestions of where 'Joanne Bloggs' might need to be updated to 'Joe Bloggs'?

Many thanks in advance 🙂

ETA: I've just checked in the Sent Items in the BT email app, and even the message sent from webmail shows as being from 'Joanne Bloggs', but at least it showed the correct name at the recipient end. All very odd.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

imjolly — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 10:22:08 GMT

after the account holders death did the spouse contact BT and have the account changed into their name or did the spouse only change the banking details?

in normal circumstances you cannot change the name of the account holder but it is possible where spouse/account holder dies then the partner cab get account changed into their name which is correct way

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 10:27:20 GMT

Thank you for your response 👍

Yes, following the death, the account was changed into the spouse's name, so billing etc is now all under Joe Bloggs. There was no need to change the banking details as payments are still being made from the same bank account.

It's just the email account that seems to be playing silly beggars! 🙄

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

licquorice — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 10:36:37 GMT

An email address is an email address, you can't change it it's unique. You can only create a different email address.

97 high street can't suddenly become 79 high street.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 10:40:35 GMT

Thank you for responding, but you have missed the point.

It's not the actual email address that needs to be changed, it is the displayed profile name that is incorrect.

i.e. email address is 'joanne.bloggs@btinternet.com'.

Displayed name should now be 'Joe Bloggs', but still sometimes incorrectly shows as 'Joanne Bloggs'.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

licquorice — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 10:52:09 GMT

That will be specific to the app and device you are using.

I.e there is no one place to change it, you need to change it on each device and app that you use to send emails.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 11:14:56 GMT

Well, apart fom the fact that an account holder's profile details should, frankly, be consistent for that profile, regardless of the app/device used (Gmail manages it, but sadly BT is clearly lacking in this regard)...

As I stated in my original post:

"in the BT email app, the display name on the front screen, despite repeatedly being changed to Joe Bloggs, still keeps reverting to Joanne Bloggs."

That is the issue. When the photo is tapped and the 'edit' screen appears, the display name shows correctly. The front screen then shows the correct name for a while, but then after a while, the app just randomly reverts the display name back to the original name. So the photo is tapped to go into the 'edit' screen, and the name is correct. Repeat ad infinitum.

There must therefore presumably be yet another setting deep in the bowels of the account holder's profile somewhere, where 'Joanne Bloggs' is still stored.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

licquorice — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 12:24:55 GMT

The displayed name is unique to a device/app combination. That is the same whether it is BT email, Gmail or any other provider.

For avoidance of doubt, Gmail behaves in exactly the same way. 3 emails sent from my Gmail account, one from the Gmail app on my phone, one from Outlook2010 on my PC and one from webmail all arrived with the different name configured on the sending method.

The BT mail app is dire, I recommend you uninstall it and install a better app such as Blue mail.

Are you actually talking about an app (client) or webmail?

For avoidance of doubt, Gmail behaves in exactly the same way.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 12:58:32 GMT

Hmmm. My Gmail account synchronises across all devices, but in all honesty I've never tried displaying my name differently across different devices/apps, why would I?

I agree that the BT email app is awful!

When I say 'webmail', I mean using BT email on the internet at email.bt.com.

In any event, the app still randomly changes the display name on my device (I am an Account Manager for the BT email account). So regardless of it possibly being set up differently across different devices, the issue remains that it doesn't show the correct name when sending on the app on my device.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

licquorice — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 13:17:40 GMT

As mentioned previously, try Blue Mail.

As far as webmail is concerned, yes, your profile name should be consistent across any browser and any device.

Are you logging in via different route when the name changes? I.e selecting email after logging in to MyBT as opposed to logging in directly.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

mog_catto — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 14:19:21 GMT

To update the name in the BT Email app, open the app and click the Menu Icon. Then click the profile icon (picture of a head) and then click Edit to change first/last name

Hopefully this updates it for you when you send emails from the BT Email app.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 14:59:10 GMT

In response to u/licquorice

"Are you logging in via different route when the name changes? I.e selecting email after logging in to MyBT as opposed to logging in directly."

The issue is (mostly) in the BT email APP, so not the webmail interface.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

licquorice — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 15:08:57 GMT

Then definitely try a different app.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 15:10:16 GMT

In response to u/mog_catto:

Thank you for your suggestion.

However, the issue is that despite the profile name having been changed many many times (as per the method in your suggestion), it always eventually reverts back to the original display/profile name on the 'front' screen (i.e. when I go to Menu from the Inbox).

This happens repeatedly no matter how many times I go to update it. And so then I go back in to edit the 'name' setting by clicking on the profile picture (as you describe), only to find that it is correctly saved there. It then shows correctly again in the main (menu) screen for a while, until it eventually reverts back to the old name. And so I click on the picture/head icon again to change it, it's already correct there, then it shows correctly for a while, and then eventually reverts back....ad infinitum.

It always shows as correct in the actual 'edit' screen, but it's the front (menu) screen (and thus the 'from' field) which keeps reverting back to the old name.

I'm not sure how I can make it any clearer or more understandable.

I guess I will just have to use the webmail interface rather than the app, should I need to send anything 🙄

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

gg30340 — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 15:11:14 GMT

If the recipent of the email has the email address saved in their email client /app contacts as the email address of joanne bloggs that is what will be displayed when they receive an email from joanne.bloggs email address.

They would need to change the first name listed in their contacts list for that email addess to joe so that when the joanne.bloggs email is received it displays that email has come from joe bloggs.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 15:13:49 GMT

This is happening even when it's an email sent to someone who has never been emailed from this email address before, and so wouldn't have Joanne Bloggs as a contact...

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

gg30340 — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 15:36:14 GMT

I know you have said you have changed the profile name but that may only be used for the account holder to be able to establish which account they are using and is not what gets displayed to a recipient.

I don't use the BTMail app, which I think is rubbish, so I am not sure of its settings but it could have a setting some where to enter the name you wish to have displayed on sent emails.

If you can,can you go into all the settings and check for that and if not try setting up another email address,even a dummy one to see if it is offered when setting up the account in order to establish if that is an option.

Re: Email display name incorrect in app

CarolynG — Sun, 26 Jan 2025 15:47:22 GMT

Lol, believe me, I have been into every goddamn setting I can find, both in the (cr)app and in the webmail. Oh, and in 'MyBT' too.

I've now added the BT account to my Gmail app and set up the display name as Joe Bloggs, tried an email to myself and it shows correctly so at least that's helpful.

Incidentally, referring to your earlier comment that how the 'from' name is displayed would depend on how the recipient has the email address set up as a contact - I have the contact (inc. that email address) set up as 'Ma & Pa', but that's never how it's ever shown up in my Inbox, so I'm not sure that follows.

Anywho, I think I'll just stick with the Gmail app or the Webmail interface going forward, the BT email app really is very poor.

I'm now trying to establish whether the 'name' field has been updated with other BT app users, perhaps not and that's why it's getting confused 🤔 although according to u/licquorice it shouldn't make any difference, as each app installation / device should be independent. We'll see 🙂