People stand in the queue to get the double windfall

Once the word was out, there was no stopping them. A British cash machine became a big hit this week after it started paying out twice as much money as it should.

The ATM, outside a supermarket in the city of Hull in northern England, began spewing out double the money Tuesday afternoon and continued doing so for several hours, drawing a crowd of hundreds eager to cash in on the mistake.

At one stage, the queue for the cash machine was a 100-strong - with many making multiple withdrawals.

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

"And people were calling their mates up and telling them to get down there."

The crowd began gathering at the store in Hull at around 5pm on Tuesday and finally dispersed at 8pm when the faulty ATM ran out of notes.

One man, who did not wish to be named, said: "I was driving past when I saw a huge queue 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."

Payzone, a company that administers ATMs, would not comment in detail on the incident but said it appeared one of its machines had malfunctioned.

Police said those who had benefited could face charges but only if the operator complained.

Most debit cards have a daily cash withdrawal limit of ￡300 - meaning that those lucky enough to use the haywire machine were able to take out a maximum of ￡600.

(Agencies)