LIKE Ivor Briggs (HAS, Aug 3), I recently bought a ticket for one hour in the Sports Direct car park in Darlington and returned 12 minutes later than I intended.

Result: an invitation through the post two weeks later from Smart Parking, Glasgow, to pay £90 compensation for “overstay”. I have settled, having acknowledged that I could not disprove that I was late back.

Only recently have the cameras been installed (which Ivor and I are paying for), replacing a friendly and helpful bearded man who was very flexible. Sports Direct tell me they have nothing to do with this parking area nor its maintenance, so presumably it is privately owned and leased out.

If I were Sports Direct, though, I would be considering the affect of this policy on my business. I have not parked there for two months and have saved a fortune.

Get smart and vote with your feet (or tyres). Park in Sainsburys, if possible, which is sensibly regulated, as their source of profit lies in retailing.

The multi-million pound parking business has become a monster that is biting-off the hand that feeds, and town centres like Darlington will eventually have the pull of a zoo on a rainy day.

Graham Harland, Barton, North Yorks