Following a collision on the A466 between St Arvans and Tintern near Chepstow on 5th November, local officers are appealing to motorists using the road to use extra care and drive according to the conditions.

The collision involved a car being driven by 19-year-old Frazer Saunders from St Briavels, Gloucestershire who lost control of his vehicle and considers himself to be lucky to have escaped with only minor injuries. Mr Saunders commented: "I was travelling home from college in Newport with my girlfriend in my Toyota Yaris which had recently passed its MOT and was in good working order.  I don't fully recall the collision but I remember driving along the road which was wet and covered in leaves at around 50 miles per hour.

"As I negotiated a left hand bend the back end seemed to step out. I felt calm and thought I had control and I didn't think there would be a problem. The back end suddenly kicked out and I was going more and more sideways. I can't remember hitting the boulder but having seen the damage to the car I can now see how lucky we were."

Chepstow Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant, Terry Lowman, who visited Mr Saunders following the collision said: "I've been working in the area for nearly 30 years and have dealt with no end of road collisions on this part of the A466. This time of year the road surface can be treacherous as a result of a mixture of rain and leaves from the forests. Frazer was exceptionally lucky to escape serious injury or worse.

"I would urge drivers to treat this road with respect. At this time of year the road can be challenging and even the most experienced of drivers have been caught out."

There have been 23 calls to the police regarding road accidents in the previous two years at this location.

Mr Saunders went on to conclude: "From now on, I will be paying extra attention to my driving, you never think it's going to happen to you until it does.

"I'm just glad we got out alive, and I'm so grateful to the Ambulance Service and the Fire Service that rescued us from the car."