The Reporter: Rupert Jones takes a sideways look at the news.

The Reporter: Rupert Jones takes a sideways look at the news.

Take Direct action: Up to 20,000 current account customers have quit First Direct since the online and phone-based bank started charging a monthly fee in February, it emerged this week. Those account-holders who do not pay in at least £1,500 a month now have to shell out £10 a month for their banking services, though the fee is waived if they buy another First Direct product, such as a savings account or credit card. The HSBC-owned bank declined to confirm the figure but says: "A small number of people out of our 1.3 million customer base have closed accounts following our decision to charge, but we are pleased with the numbers given that it was a significant move for us." If you are one of those now forking out £120 a year for your account, now's the time to do something about it.

Golden oldies, not Goldenballs: Lecture time. Too many of us are "living for today at the expense of tomorrow," with the amount we spend on designer goods, cosmetic surgery and alcohol dwarfing what we set aside for our old age, according to new research from investment giant Fidelity. It found that almost half of those with no savings say they cannot afford to save for retirement - yet each year the average household spends £769 on alcohol and £1,908 on restaurants and hotels. "Purchases of designer brand watches recently exceeded maxi Isas, and it seems many are choosing to emulate the lifestyle of rich celebrities.....continued below

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like David and Victoria Beckham [below], even though we won't be able to retire like them," says a spokesman. You can work out your "retirement number" - the amount of money you must amass to fund a comfortable retirement - using My Plan, Fidelity's online calculator; go to rewritingretirement.com

The big turn-off: If you are keen to cut your electricity bills, you may want to be part of a big trial of so-called smart meters announced this week. Energy regulator Ofgem is to hold the first large-scale trials in Britain of advanced energy meters. Around 23,000 British homes will get a new meter as part of the £20m trial. The idea is that if you can see how much power you are using at any one time, you are more likely to turn things off. And when it comes to replacing your white goods, you will be more inclined to purchase a model that uses the least power.

Critical of this cover: Critical illness insurance has long been controversial because of the high number of claims that are rejected by insurers. Many are turned down on the grounds that the policyholder failed to mention something important when they took out the cover ("non-disclosure") - even if this information has nothing to do with their claim. This week, in a bid to restore confidence in this type of insurance, Friends Provident said it will pay out a proportion of a critical illness claim where non-disclosure has happened, provided that whatever the individual forgot to mention isn't related to the cause of the claim. So, if someone failed to mention something at the outset and should really have been paying twice as much for their cover, the firm might pay out half what it otherwise would have done.