Volunteers at an Aids advice charity have been unable to answer urgent emails after their internet account was cut off by mistake.

Avert founder Annabel Kanabus called into her office in Brighton Road, Horsham, to check the emails, only to find the line was dead.

When she called providers BT Openworld, the company admitted the account had been stopped due to a paperwork mix-up and told her it would take five working days to fix.

Mrs Kanabus explained she urgently needed access to the emails because many people wrote to Avert seeking one-to-one advice.

However, she was told nothing more could be done.

Mrs Kanabus said: "I could not believe it. They admitted they had made a mistake but did not do anything to rectify it.

"To leave us without emails for more than a week is outrageous.

"There may be messages there from people who have just told their families they are HIV-positive and are desperate for advice.

"If I cannot read and reply to them, they will feel abandoned."

Avert offers practical advice on HIV and Aids and raises money for research into the disease. Its web site is visited by more than 70,000 people a week.

Mrs Kanabus set up the charity with her husband Peter in 1988 after inheriting Sainsbury's shares worth several million pounds when her father, Sir Robert Sainsbury, died.

A BT Openworld spokesman said: "There is a problem with the account and it has been ceased in error.

"We will try to resolve it as soon as possible, although we do not know what the timescale will be.

"We apologise to the customer for any inconvenience."