A family and a group of teenagers were lucky to escape without serious injury when the cars they were travelling in collided.

Police, ambulance and two pumps from Thames-side were called to the accident which happened at 7.35pm on Friday in Wrotham Road, Culverstone.

Firefighters say when they arrived at the scene everyone was out of the vehicles but that the car the teenagers were travelling in, believed to be a Renault, was resting on the bonnet of the family's 4 x 4 people carrier.

The cars were travelling in opposite directions when it's believed the Renault lost control and spun into the path of the other vehicle.

Crew manager David Aylwin believes it could have been a lot worse.

He said: "If the cars had collided head on I believe we would have been dealing with a fatality.

"The front of the people carrier was smashed up and the Renault's rear end was caved in."

The driver of the Renault was put on a spinal board and taken to hospital as a precautionary measure.

Police closed the road while the vehicles were recovered.

The road was re-opened at around 9pm.

The Gravesend Messenger has been campaigning for safety measures for the A227 following a number of accidents, including three fatal, in the last 18 months.

On Tuesday Kent Highways Services were given the go ahead to spend £50,000 on re signing the road, to direct heavy traffic to other routes.