There has been an increase in the number of pensioners facing bankruptcy over the last five years, according to new figures.

Last year, 2,595 people over the age of 60 were declared bankrupt, marking an increase from 983 in 2004, Wilkins Kennedy found.

Director at the accountancy firm Anthony Cork said: "While the number of personal insolvencies has been climbing relentlessly, the finances of those aged over 65 are deteriorating much faster."

He said that many people remortgaged their properties during the housing boom, which has now left them with substantial debts.

Furthermore, Mr Cork revealed that their debt management problems are often made worse by the credit and debit cards they took on at times of economic boom, which they are now unable to meet the repayments on.

These figures were compiled using information from the Insolvency Service, which revealed there were 29,774 individual insolvencies in the first quarter of 2009, marking a 1.6 per cent rise on the previous quarter.

This was comprised of 19,062 bankruptcies and 10,713 individual voluntary arrangements.