Suffolk Housing Society has written to three Suffolk MPs this week (Monday 1 September), calling on them to back a national campaign, which aims to stop energy firms ripping off their poorest customers.

Steve Clarke, chief executive of Suffolk Housing Society has written to ask David Ruffley MP for Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket, Richard Spring MP for West Suffolk and Chris Mole MP for the Ipswich area to raise the issue of prepayment tariffs directly with Energy Minister, Malcolm Wicks.

Prepayment meter customers can pay up to £300 more than households who can access the best deals online, despite being among the energy companies poorest customers. They can also pay up to £90 more for their gas and electricity than quarterly billed customers.

The Government acknowledged the plight of Britain’s five million prepayment meter customers in the Budget when he called on energy suppliers to give them a ‘fairer deal’.

But the firms have repeatedly ignored warnings from ministers to lower their prepayment charges – prompting housing societies across the country to urge their local MPs to press the government into taking more action.

Hundreds of housing associations, including Suffolk Housing Society, have written to their local MPs during Energy Action Week (1-5 September 2008) in an attempt to turn the heat up on energy suppliers.

The nationwide campaign has been organised by the National Housing Federation, the trade body for housing associations in England. Research carried out by the Federation last month found 14% of gas pre-payment meter customers and 9% of electricity pre-payment meters, had ‘self disconnected’ over the last year because they could not afford to top up their meter.

Steve Clarke, chief executive of Suffolk Housing Society, said: “Research ahs found that people who use pre-payment meters often have to pay more than other consumers for their energy, this is simply not fair. As a housing society we provide affordable homes for purchase or rental, and take the welfare of our tenants very seriously.

“Pre-payment meter customers should not have to pay more to heat and light their homes. We support the National Housing Federation’s calls to urge MPs to do more to raise the issue within government to force a fairer deal on energy prices for households on pre-payment meters.”

David Orr, chief executive of the National Housing Federation, said: "We've already had warm words from the Government on ending the pre-payment meter premium. What we need now is firm action - and that means bringing prepayment tariffs into line with standard credit bills. If Government proposes anything less than that, it will be failing millions of low income energy customers."