A motorist is prepared to go to court to fight three parking fines which he says were wrongly handed out.

Wayne Saunders was snapped by the automatic number plate recognition camera entering the Ship and Trades car park at Chatham Maritime in the evening, but the 45-year-old said the camera failed to capture him leaving again minutes later after buying groceries from the Co-op.

The electrical engineer said the camera also managed not to see him going in again the following morning when he went to buy a newspaper, but did see him leaving.

Because of the time difference he was slapped with a £100 fine for staying in the car park overnight. It is understood that Mr Saunders is not the only motorist claiming to have been wrongly fined.

In July, Shepherd Neame installed the camera and introduced a two-hour time limit for the car park which serves the Ship and Trades, the Co-op and the Fish Bar.

Mr Saunders, who lives on St Mary’s Island, where he has two secure parking bays, often goes to the shop evenings and mornings and has now received three £100 fines for parking overnight.

He said: “They haven’t seen me leaving in the evenings or going back in the mornings. It seems very odd to me.

“I’m going to appeal. I won’t pay the fine and I’ll let it go as far as it can go, even take it to court if necessary.”

Mr Saunders is trying to get hold of CCTV from any neighbours or the island’s security team to prove he did drive home on the evenings concerned.

A Shepherd Neame spokesman said: “In July, we and our neighbouring businesses responded to customer demand to improve the limited parking available by setting a two hour limit. This is administered by UK Car Park Management (CPM).

"Ship and Trades customers who are staying overnight, or intend to be at the pub for longer than two hours, can continue to enjoy unrestricted parking by notifying the reception team of their registration number.

"Our staff are doing everything possible to ensure the new system runs smoothly, and we appreciate customers’ patience during its introduction. Should any issues arise, there is an appeals procedure in place.”

CPM, which issues the parking notices, has not responded to requests for a comment.

It follows a similar complaint last month when a McDonald's customer, Robert Newton claimed he had been wrongly penalised for overstaying at the Bobbing fast-food restaurant.