Customers at Sainsbury’s in Ashford could find a £70 charge land on their doorstep if they are caught out by new parking rules and a high-tech surveillance system.

Bybrook Sainsbury’s in Simone Weil Avenue will continue to allow shoppers to park for three hours, but the store has now installed a number plate recognition camera that will calculate exactly how long they have parked there for.

The new system was put in place to stop commuters and car sharers using the car park all day, which is difficult to monitor with a single parking attendent covering a number of car parks.

CCTV style cameras have been placed at the entrance and exit to the car park and take timed photographs the car entering and leaving the car park, and also close ups of the vehicle’s number plate.

Problems with the system might arise when a customer visits Sainsbury’s more than once in 24 hours and finds that their first entry is paired with their last exit.

Customers will face a £70 charge if they go over the three hour limit, park in a disabled bay without a valid blue badge, park in a parent and child bay without a child or park outside a marked bay.

A Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: “We’re always looking for ways to make shopping easier for our customers and the electronic number plate recognition system at our Bybrook store helps customers have better access to available spaces in our car park, which is particularly useful at busy times.”