A couple were lucky to escape with their lives after a stolen car crashed through the front of their house as they slept in a room upstairs.

Samantha Wells, 45, and her partner Andrew Mann, 49, were woken at 3am on Saturday by the sound of the stolen BMW 318 ploughing into their detached house in Reevy Road, Buttershaw.

The silver vehicle hit Miss Wells’ Volkswagen car before it smashed through the front of the house and came to a halt in the living room – directly underneath the couple’s bedroom.

The driver of the BMW, which is believed to have been stolen from a house in Halifax on Friday evening, made off before the couple arrived downstairs. An 18-year-old Halifax man is currently in police custody on suspicion of burglary, having been earlier treated for a head injury at Bradford Royal Infirmary.

A Bradford Council worker – called out to make the house safe – said the whole front corner of the property was in danger of collapsing and the couple were lucky to escape unharmed.

Miss Wells, who is a nurse at Airedale General Hospital, said: “We were woken up by a loud bang. My car had been parked outside but when I looked out of the window it was further down the road and looked like it had been written off.

“I called 999 because of what had happened but I couldn’t see the other car until I looked down and saw it had come through the living room wall. I didn’t know if anyone was still in the vehicle and had to go check.

“I just feel disbelief and shock at what has happened. I felt like I was looking at something that wasn’t actually there. It didn’t seem real.”

A bay window was completely destroyed by the collision, leaving a gaping hole in the front of the house. The garden wall was also knocked down and the gable end of the property was left cracked and skewed.

A blue Vauxhall Zafira and a black Peugeot were also damaged during the incident.

Contractors for the Council arrived on the scene at 4.30am and spent up to eight hours making the property safe.

Justin Booth, principal building control surveyor for the Council, said: “The gable end of the house is skewed and the property was in danger of collapse when we arrived. It is being held up by accro props now but it will need considerable repair.

“The couple are very lucky. If the angle or the speed of the vehicle had been different it could have caused the end of the house to fall down. Miss Wells’ car parked outside the property will have taken a lot of energy out of the impact and they were fortunate it was there.”

Mr Mann’s young son Lewis was also asleep in the house at the time of incident.

The couple now face living in temporary accommodation until the damage is repaired.

Police are appealing for witnesses following the incident. Anyone who can help with their enquiries is asked to contact DS Matt Dalton at Calderdale CID on 0845 6060247.