A dad has described the terrifying moment he realised how close his teenage son had come to being wiped out by a car that flipped through the air and hurtled towards him at a petrol station.

Peter Timon and his 14-year-old son Oliver were on their way back from a Dartford Valley Rugby Club's Under-14s game when they stopped for petrol off the A20 near Swanley.

But what should have been a routine stop turned into a near-miss when a car crashed into the forecourt.

A man was taken to hospital following the smash which left a vehicle on top of a petrol pump.

Mr Timon was paying for his fuel when he heard an "almighty crash" outside.

The 44-year-old said: "The two petrol station attendants were in a state of shock. One immediately made a phone call.

"I saw a gentleman climb out of the vehicle. I shouted for my son to get away from the pumps and come inside. I do not think he realised the gravity of what had happened.

"He was looking towards the A20 and saw it. He thinks they aquaplaned. They had skidded before they came into the garage. It [the vehicle] then came flying in and landed where it was."

The dad-of-six had the choice of pumps when he drove into the then-empty garage and decided to park on the far left where it was easier to exit.

His son was stood next to the pump looking out across the A20 near Swanley where he saw the black BMW.

The teenager said: "The car was driving up the A20 when it lost control and started drifting, then it hit something on the floor which sent it in the air doing flips and landing on its bonnet on the pump."

Paramedics were called at around 6.20pm on Sunday to reports of a collision involving two vehicles on the Swanley Bypass.

"I have been in a state of shock. Sunday has taught me that we should all worry a little less about deadlines and to hug the ones we love."

They treated a man at the scene before transferring him to a major trauma centre as a priority.

Mr Timon, from Sevenoaks, said there were several people in the vehicle, and he helped move one of the men out of the rain with another witness.

He said: "I did not know if it would blow up. I was not comfortable with moving him as I did not know the extent of his injuries but where he was, he was too close to the vehicle for my liking. It was the lesser danger, as it were."

The father and son were on their way back from Dartford Valley Rugby Club's Under-14s game in a Kent Waterfall Rugby competition at Old Elthamians.

After watching the England Six Nations match with family they had headed home.

Peter added: "I have had flashbacks to that night. If that BP had been busier, I may have chosen a different pump and my son would have been in between the incident and it would have just crushed him.

"I had visions of coming home without my son. It was pure, pure luck and that is what scared me.

"I have been in a state of shock. Sunday has taught me that we should all worry a little less about deadlines and to hug the ones we love."