Keep the $100 bills, bank says after ATM went overboard

A glitch at an ATM in north Harris County caused it to mistakenly dispense $100 bills. A glitch at an ATM in north Harris County caused it to mistakenly dispense $100 bills. Photo: Metro Video Photo: Metro Video Image 1 of / 54 Caption Close Keep the $100 bills, bank says after ATM went overboard 1 / 54 Back to Gallery

Keep your money, says the mega bank that accidentally gave out $100 bills in place of $10 bills.

A Bank of America ATM near the intersection of FM 1960 and Interstate 45 distributed the bounty on Sunday evening, drawing a line of vehicles and pedestrians after word of its malfunction spread.

The bucks stopped with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, which sent deputies to break up the line and block anyone else from accessing the ATM by 10:30 p.m. No arrests were made near the machine on Sunday.

“This was an incident at a single ATM in Houston caused when a vendor incorrectly loaded $100 bills in place of $10 bills,” Bank of America said in a statement. “We have resolved the matter. Customers will be able to keep the additional money dispensed.”

It is unclear how many people profited on Sunday or how much was withdrawn from the ATM.

Malfunctioning ATMs that hand out too much cash aren’t uncommon, said Jason Spencer, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office, but it’s unusual for a machine to do so for multiple consecutive transactions.

Typically, when a bank notices that a client has overdrawn from an ATM — accidentally or otherwise — it sends a letter demanding repayment of the extra funds. Before Bank of America’s announcement, Spencer said he expected the bank to follow that procedure.

If someone overdraws from an ATM and fails to respond to the bank or repay the money, the sheriff’s office has the option to open a theft investigation, he said.

But that shouldn’t be an issue since Bank of America is feeling the holiday spirit. Here’s a little something extra to go under your tree, Houstonians.

Chronicle reporter Andrea Leinfelder contributed to this story.

emily.burleson@chron.com