The family were at home during yesterday evening's incident in which the vehicle stopped short of the front of their home.

Two men are now being questioned by police after the car flattened a lamppost and then careered through a brick garden wall.

It happened around 7.30pm on Sunday evening in King Oswy Drive, in Hartlepool.

The pair were arrested shortly after the Vauxhall Omega mounted the verge and knocked over the lamppost before ploughing through the garden wall of the family home.

The family, who were at home at the time, were too distressed to speak when approached by the Mail.

But a shocked onlooker who lives in nearby Studland Drive said she heard the crash from her home.

She said: "I was in the bath but had the window ajar and I just heard an almighty screech and a thud.

"The family who live in the house have been very lucky that they were not hurt. This road is getting worse for cars flying up and down, it's terrible that this happened."

A spokesman for Cleveland Police confirmed that two men had been arrested and that they were due to be questioned in relation to the incident.

Fire crews from Stranton Station attended the scene and made the area safe.

A spokesman said: "Two pumps and an emergency tender attended the scene to make the area safe and to clean up an oil spillage."