Key facts
- Microsoft said the outage was caused by higher-than-usual stress on its servers and that systems showed early signs of stabilisation.
- NHS England said patients should attend appointments unless told otherwise and use 999 for emergencies.
- The National Pharmacy Association said waits may be longer than normal and some prescriptions may be delayed.
- Metropolitan Police, Greater Manchester Police and North Yorkshire Police said online forms may be affected.
- Defence minister Luke Pollard said the government was assessing the impact on its systems.
- Microsoft and cyber-security experts ruled out a cyber-attack as the cause, the BBC reported.
A Microsoft outage disrupted UK public services on November 13, 2026, affecting GP surgeries, police online forms and pharmacies, the BBC reported. Microsoft said the problem was caused by higher-than-usual stress on its servers and that systems were showing early signs of stabilisation as work continued on a fix.
NHS England said patients should still attend appointments unless told otherwise. NHS trusts in England were enacting measures to minimise disruption to critical services, a spokesperson said. Some GP surgeries urged patients not to submit messages via their websites, with practices in Hampshire and Shropshire telling patients to phone or come in for urgent needs.
The National Pharmacy Association said the outage was affecting pharmacies' ability to communicate with GP practices and some patients, so waits may be longer than normal and some prescriptions may be delayed. The Metropolitan Police, Greater Manchester Police and North Yorkshire Police said online forms may be affected and urged people to call 101 with time-critical but non-emergency reports. South Wales Police and Dyfed-Powys Police reported similar issues, and Police Scotland said there may be delays responding to forms submitted in the past 24 hours.
Defence minister Luke Pollard told BBC Breakfast the government was assessing the impact on its systems and would issue a statement once completed. A government spokesperson said it was working closely with Microsoft to assess any impact on government services. MPs were unable to access their parliamentary accounts, though a spokesperson said alternative arrangements were in place for the day's business.
Royal Mail said some online services were unavailable and email notifications about deliveries may be delayed, but post was still being collected and delivered as normal. Northern Ireland's Education Authority said its schools were unable to access email accounts. Heathrow, Manchester and Stansted airports were operating as usual, and the London Ambulance Service said its critical platforms do not use Microsoft.
Microsoft and cyber-security experts ruled out a cyber-attack as the cause of the outage, which affected Outlook, Teams and Copilot. Microsoft said a large number of its servers had become unexpectedly available, sending traffic to the servers that remained online and putting them under strain.