Bank customers queue round the block as cash machine pays out DOUBLE their money

People are sheep and given the opportunity they're willing to cheat and
steal. The thing that gets me is that they're willing to do it in large
groups. To me this ranks only a few notches below a riotous mob smashing
store fronts and looting the stores.

I don't know HOW many times I've returned money that wasn't mine when a
cashier has made change for me. Why? Because it's the morally RIGHT thing
to do. These people chose to call friends so that they could come down and
get 'free' money. It never occurs to people that everything in life has a
cost associated with it. As economists say 'there's no such thing as a free
lunch'. The banks will recover their money one way or another.

Regardless of how much you feel the banks are ripping you off this is just
wrong. And in the States it is illegal.

Just as a comparison in the U.S., consider a NY man who had millions of
dollars that was wrongly deposited into his account. It was the banks
error, but he spent it. He's now facing charges of grand larceny in New
York:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2008/02/20/2008-02-20_brooklyn_man_
busted_for_draining_bank_ac-1.html

Here's the story that sparked my rant:

Bank
<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id
=539609&in_page_id=1770> customers queue round the block as cash machine
pays out DOUBLE their money

Last updated at 13:27pm on 19th March 2008

Bank customers couldn't believe their luck when a cash machine began to
double the money they requested.

Word quickly spread and from late yesterday afternoon to 8pm a large queue
lined up to use the machine outside a Sainsbury's Local store in Hull, east
Yorks.

The faulty machine finally ran out of notes at about 8pm.

Scroll down for more...

Hull cash machine

Two for one: Customers queue outside the cash machine in Hull last night
which paid out twice the amount requested before running out of cash

It is also believed that a number of cash machines outside supermarkets in
Hull also experienced similar problems.

One man who did not wish to be named said: "I was driving past when I saw a
huge queue of about 30 people at the cash machine.

"I parked up and learned that it was paying out double. I joined the queue
and when I finally got to the front I drew out £200 but it gave me £400.

"The statement said I only drew out £200. I don't know whether I will have
to pay it back."

One unlucky punter was taxi driver David Mellors. The father of seven, 37,
arrived at 7pm but by the time he got to the front, it ran out of money.

"I was disappointed. It was the ultimate buy one get one free sale and I
missed out," he said.

A spokesman for Sainsbury's said it had been alerted to the problem at about
8pm last night.

"We do not know how much the machine paid out at the moment but the matter
is under investigation" she said.

One eye witness said: "It was really funny seeing all those people trying to
get one over on the banks.

"They were walking away with huge wads of cash and big smiles on their
faces.

"They were ringing their mates and telling them to get down quickly. It
makes up for all the banks charges I guess. I hope they don't have to pay it
back."