Bank customers in Co Wicklow who benefited from a banking error on Friday which saw an ATM distribute €50 notes instead of €20 notes may be in for a surprise, as the bank yesterday confirmed they will be able to identify all those who profited from the error.
Locals in Arklow noticed an unusually long queue forming at the Lower Main Street AIB ATM on Friday evening, as word of the malfunctioning cash machine spread about the town rapidly through phone calls and text messages.
Within less than an hour, the ATM was believed to be empty, and it remained "out of service" for the rest of the weekend.
An AIB spokeswoman yesterday confirmed there had been an "error" with an ATM in Arklow and that the machine was "closed down on Friday evening". The amount the error may have cost the bank has not yet been calculated.
The spokeswoman went on to say that although a decision had not yet been made about how to handle the incident, AIB would be aware of the identity of those who withdrew cash, regardless of whether they were AIB customers or customers of another bank.
Local business people estimate that normally the bank machine would contain upwards of €60,000 for weekend transactions and it is estimated the bank may be as much as €45,000 out of pocket as a result of its unintended generosity.
The AIB Arklow branch is fitted with CCTV equipment, so even though the bank statements of those who made withdrawals will not have recorded the actual amount they received, footage will have recorded them profiting from the error.
There much was speculation in Arklow over the weekend as to the cause of the error, which ranged from a failure of the software used to control the ATM, to suggestions that €50 notes were mistakenly loaded into the chute for €20 notes.