A ST Briavels man says he is lucky to have sustained only minor injuries after losing control of his car on a notorious stretch of road in the Wye Valley.

Frazer Saunders, who is 19, was travelling home from college in Newport on Bonfire Night when he crashed on the A466 between St Arvans and Tintern.

Local police are appealing to motorists to use extra care and drive according to the conditions.

Mr Saunders was travelling in his Toyota Yaris with his girlfriend when the the car left the road and struck a boulder.

He said: "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."

Sergeant Terry Lowman of Chepstow police 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. Fraser 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 on this part of the Chepstow to Monmouth road.

Mr Saunders added: "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."