The inflation rate facing people over 75 years old is now 36% higher than the official rate of inflation, according to Alliance Trust.

Research from Alliance Trust found that people in the above age category face an inflation rate of 3.4%, nearly 1% higher than the UK’s official headline rate of 2.5%. Food price inflation is close to 6% and electricity prices have risen by more than 5% over the past year.

According to Alliance Trust, these price increases have a major impact on the inflation rate facing the elderly because a significant proportion of their household income is spent on these items.

Shona Dobbie, head of the Alliance Trust research centre, said: “The problem facing all households at the moment is that the prices of basic goods and services are displaying the highest level of inflationary pressure. These are the items which we buy every day and every week and so the impact on our wallets is highly visible. This makes inflation seem a lot higher than the official rate suggests.

“Unfortunately, we see little respite from this situation over the next couple of months as the oil price remains high and some categories of food are beginning to experience shortages on a global basis. We would not be surprised to see headline inflation rise further.”