RBS is giving back cash to 4,500 people - after telling them they didn't even have an account

The Royal Bank of Scotland is being forced to give back cash to around 4,500 people after it wrongly told them that they didn't even have an account with the bank.

Basically, customers got in touch via the British Bankers' Association's "Lost Account scheme" which bridges bank clients with dormant accounts.

RBS initially told them that they didn't even have an account.

However it said that the bank itself spotted the mistake in telling thousands of people it didn't have cash with the bank and is now going to reimburse people.

RBS said the average amount of cash in a dormant account is less than £50 ($76).

"Unfortunately we wrongly advised some customers who had made a request through the BBA Lost Account scheme that they did not hold a dormant account with us," said RBS in a statement.

"We are very sorry that this happened and as soon as we discovered this we took steps to correct our error. We are writing to all affected customers and asking them to visit their local branch with ID to reclaim their outstanding balance.

"We have apologised for the inconvenience caused and are making sure that we put this right."