Snakes alive! Mechanics faced a slippery customer when they answered an animal SOS call.

Distressed Andrew Yeates contacted Snodhurst Service Station in Walderslade when his pet snake got trapped inside the dashboard of his girlfriend’s car.

The 5ft corn snake, called Dave, escaped from its tank on the back seat when Andrew’s girlfriend Racheal was helping him move house.

Andrew, 25, of Princes Park, Chatham, said: “She was driving along and it slithered out from under the seat and disappeared behind an air vent.

“She is terrified of it. She abandoned the car at the side of the road and was screaming at me down the phone, so I had to go and get the car because she refused to drive it.”

Andrew then spent the next 24 hours trying to keep the snake warm while he tried to figure out what to do.

He said: “I was going out there every two hours throughout the night to put the heating on. I was pretty stressed out and worried he might die.”

The following day Racheal came up with the idea of taking the car to a mechanic for help.

The garage team used a tiny camera they usually use to check out cars in need of repair, to track down the reptile and then set about taking the dashboard to bits to reach it.

Manager Jon Primett said: “We have never been asked to do anything like this before.

“It took four of the guys about 15 minutes to get it out. Luckily none of them are scared of snakes. We didn’t charge the woman for doing it - we did it out of the kindness of our hearts.”

Andrew added: “Dave is now safe and well back in his tank at home. I’m so grateful to the garage for their help.”