A Park Wood man was lucky to survive after his late-night cigarette run ended in disaster.

Maidstone Magistrates' Court heard Liam Love had been out in Maidstone town centre last July, returning to his home in Highcroft Green at about 11.30pm.

Andrew Jones, prosecuting, told the court that at about 5am he decided to take his mother’s partner’s Ford Fiesta and drive to a garage.

He said: “The defendant began to drive towards Maidstone. He lost control, drove into railings and crashed into a lamppost.

“The car burst into flames. Members of the public ran to the car and started removing items of the defendant’s clothing which had caught alight.

“He was partially clothed but then ran off along Sutton Road in the direction of Northumberland Avenue.

“He knocked on someone’s door and they let him in. Some time later the police and paramedics arrived and the defendant was taken to hospital.

“The car was completely destroyed. The owner says it was valued at £6,500 but the insurer claims it was worth £4,800.”

Toby Burrough, defending, said Love, 20, was taken to the reconstructive surgery unit at Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead, and then to the specialist burns unit at Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford, where he spent four days in a coma.

He said: “If he had got there any later he wouldn’t be here today.

“There was skin hanging off his hands and feet.

"He had serious burns to 30% of his body and has had a whole host of extensive skin grafts since then.

"His entire right arm is scar tissue and at one point they thought he would lose his left hand.

“He has been signed off work for 18 months and his injuries serve as a constant reminder of the stupid decision he took.

"Every time he looks in the mirror he is reminded of that moment of madness and the price he will have to pay for the rest of his life.”

Sentencing Love, who admitted aggravated vehicle taking, to 90 days in prison, suspended for six months, Lynda Jones, chairman of the bench, said: “You could have killed someone.

"As soon as you lost control of that car it became a weapon and you could have driven it into a group of people and killed more than one.”

Love was also ordered to pay £540 and has a two-month curfew from 8pm to 8am.