A car which smashed into the side of a house in Canterbury was being driven by a police officer who blacked out at the wheel.

The off-duty cop’s blue Renault Megane demolished a bollard before careering into a house at the junction of Old Dover Road and Ethelbert Road.

It caused huge delays throughout south Canterbury during the rush hour.

The PC was taken to the Kent and Canterbury Hospital for a check-up.

Two other cars were involved in the accident, but no one else was hurt.

Police were called to control traffic.

Spokesman Jon Green said: “The driver, an off-duty constable, had a medical episode and collapsed at the wheel.”

Retired social worker Chris Bailes, who owns the house, said: “It made a very loud bang. The crash took that bollard out and I fear he may have been far more seriously hurt if it hadn’t been for that.”

A section of Mr Bailes’s wall was smashed in and is now surrounded by plastic fencing.

The road was closed for almost three hours after the crash at 7.45am last Thursday.