Dashcam shows caravan being atomised in high-speed motorway crash

HGV driver Andrew Marsden was on the motorway when the caravan snaked out of control right in front of him

Adam Wareing and Howard Lloyd Regional content editor 11:24, 11 Dec 2025

This is the heart-stopping moment a motorist lost control of his wobbling caravan while overtaking - leaving it obliterated across the motorway. HGV driver Andrew Marsden was heading down the M5 near Evesham, Worcestershire[1] on October 9 when he spotted a hatchback towing a 'wobbling' caravan in the middle lane.

Shocking dashcam footage, captured by a fellow HGV driver behind him, shows the caravan shaking from one side of the lane to the other as it overtakes him.

As the movements intensify the hatchback wobbles with it until the driver loses control and careers across the motorway before crashing onto the hard shoulder.

Andrew can be seen steering his 15.5-tonne vehicle towards the hard shoulder to give the struggling motorist time to straighten up but is forced to slam on the brakes. The 48-year-old says he stopped 10 feet away from crushing the car and killing the lone motorist whose caravan was completely destroyed.

The dad says if his lorry had been fully loaded to its maximum weight of 44 tonnes then he would not have stopped in time to avoid a fatal collision. Lee Flower, who happened to be driving behind Andrew and caught the dashcam footage, says that when he checked on the driver he 'looked white' but didn't have any injuries.

The 45-year-old's clip has been posted online where users praised Andrew's 'lightning reactions' to avoid killing the 'lucky' motorist.

Andrew, from Worcester, Worcestershire, said: "I just gripped the steering wheel, put my foot on the break and hoped for the best.

"As I looked in my mirror he started wobbling and it looked like it was getting worse. I started heading for the hard shoulder to give him some room in case he was able to straighten it up but then it went really wrong really quickly.

"I went straight to the hard shoulder and the next thing I know he's in front of me and the caravan is in lane three. The HGV is still 15.5 tonnes empty and if that goes through him that's going to kill him and I don't think I could drive again after that."

The RAC say towing issues can be caused by numerous factors including but not limited to incorrect loading, towball weight, crosswinds and speed.

HGV driver Lee caught the incident on his dashcam and praised Andrew for his quick reactions.

Lee, from Trowbridge, Wiltshire said: "Everyone is so lucky that nobody died. It could have been a lot worse. "I was going to overtake the lorry but I saw the caravan wobbling, I backed off then he wobbled and wobbled and crashed.

"I looked in my mirror to see what was behind me because I knew this was going to get messy pretty quickly. "I don't know what could have caused it. It might have been the slip stream from the lorries.

"It was lucky the guy in front of me was empty because that helped with his stopping distance.

If he was fully loaded he might have gone straight through him. "The lorry driver did well to stop.

"When I checked he was alright he looked a bit white. He said he was alright but I told him he doesn't really look it."

Lee says he left the scene at the same time the ambulance did, around 25 minutes after the incident. His shocking clip has more than 6,000 reactions, 1,400 comments and 1,300 shares on Facebook[2].

One commented: "Quick as lightning reactions. Glad everyone is alright. It must've been f**king scary."

A second added: "The car driver has a lovely flatbed trailer now." A third wrote: "Saved a life there driver, well played."

West Mercia Police confirmed it was called about the incident but National Highways managed the situation so did not attend.

A National Highways spokesperson said: "The incident took place at the side of the road and did not therefore impact on our network other than increased congestion.

"We did not need to impose a road closure while the vehicles were recovered."

References

1. ^ Worcestershire (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
2. ^ Facebook (www.bristolpost.co.uk)