A visitor yesterday blasted bankers for refusing to change Scottish banknotes into Bermudian dollars.

Patricia Paterson tried to change around 300 ($450) of notes issued by Scotland's Clydesdale Bank.

But a teller at the Bank of Butterfield's Rosebank Centre in Hamilton said she could not convert Scottish currency.

Ms Paterson, 33, of Langside, Glasgow, Scotland, who is visiting the Island with her five-year-old son Liam, said: "It was extremely embarrassing.

"There were quite a lot of people in the bank and I felt like I was being accused of trying to pass Monopoly money or something.

She added: "Frankly, I'd never heard of the Bank of Butterfield either, but I was prepared to accept they were a competent organisation -- obviously I was wrong.'' And Ms Paterson pointed out: "That could have been all the money I had for all they knew -- my holiday could have been a disaster.

"I suppose I should have complained to a senior official -- but all I wanted to do was get out of the place.

"I've since heard Bermuda is a major offshore financial centre. It's surprising the Bank of Butterfield at least is so parochial.'' She added she had an ATM card -- also issued by a Scottish bank -- which was accepted by the Bank of Butterfield's cash machines.

Scotland, while still part of the UK, retains separate legal and educational systems, is governed differently from England -- and prints its own money.

Ms Paterson said: "You would expect a small country like Bermuda, which has preserved its uniqueness, to respect the traditions of another small country.'' A spokesman for the Bank of Butterfield confirmed the bank did not accept Scottish-issued notes in over-the-counter transactions.

But he said it would be prepared to accept the notes, send them back to the issuing bank in Scotland for changing into the equivalent value in Bank of England notes.

A spokesman at the Clydesdale Bank's headquarters in Glasgow said all three Scottish clearing banks issued their own notes, unlike English banks, which use notes issued by the Bank of England.

He added the Clydesdale -- part of the North Australia Group, a multi-national organisation which includes the Bank of New Zealand and the Michigan Bank in the US -- was founded in 1838 and had printed its own cash since then.

He said: "It's very disappointing. We retained the right to issue our own banknotes under a banking act of 1884. There used to be a problem in England with some Scottish notes, but that is a thing of the past.

"Our notes are equal in status to the Bank of England notes issued in England.

"And we can assure the Bank of Butterfield our notes are readily acceptable here and in the rest of the UK.'' And Edwina Lambert, branch manager of the Bank of Bermuda's Front Street operation, said if Ms Paterson wanted to come in, her staff would be happy to change her money.