HUNDREDS of furious bank customers were left without cash when ATM machines swallowed their cards.

An electronic blunder meant HBOS customers across the west of Scotland couldn't get cash out of any bank's machine.

Instead of getting money, they were left with a printout which told them their card had been retained.

Bank of Scotland bosses have begun an investigation, but say they can't tell how many machines - or customers - were hit. It's known that yesterday's blunder lasted for around an hour.

Neil McLean, a 34-year-old Glasgow office worker, said: "I'm with the Bank of Scotland but tried to get money out of a Royal Bank machine in Sauchiehall Street.

"I didn't get a penny and all I got was a slip of paper saying my card had been retained. I went to a Bank of Scotland branch to discover customers queueing almost out the door."

A businesswoman in Lenzie said: "I just can't believe what's happened. I'm with HBOS but I came away with no money when I tried to use an ATM at my local Nationwide branch.

"I phoned the bank and was told it could be a week before a replacement card is issued. It means I've got to walk into an HBOS branch loaded to the gunnels with ID if I want to withdraw my money from my account.

HBOS officials apologised and tried to play down the chaos.

A spokesman said: "We had a technical issue with some of our debit cards for about an hour.

"The problem has been fixed and normal service has resumed. The vast majority of our customers were unaffected. We'd like to apologise for any inconvenience."