A driver has spoken of his shock after his van was almost shunted off the road in a terrifying hit and run.

Matthew Davidson says he was forced to try and give chase when a motorist sped away after hitting his vehicle in Hawkinge, leaving it badly damaged.

Mr Davidson had been travelling in his black Citroen Berlingo van up the A260 hill away from his home town of Folkestone when he was suddenly hit by another car.

He said the only warning he had was a brief flash of a red Peugeot 106 in his drivers mirror in the outer lane.

"Suddenly there was an almighty bang as the other driver smashed into my driver's door and wing," he explained.

"The force of the impact pushed my van sideways into the curb where the guard railing is. It took me a moment to realise what had just happened.

"It was still in contact with the side of me and I was had to steer to keep the van straight in my lane – I didn’t fancy getting further pushed up the curb and was trying to avoid the metal guard rail."

To add to his shock, the other car then reportedly took off and attempted to flee the scene, despite Mr Davidson's efforts to catch up.

"I was trying to get his attention by honking my horn and flashing my lights – not that he needed to be reminded of what had just happened," he explained.

"There were bits of his car falling over the road but he kept going, overtaking the cars in front of him and cutting back in.

"He shot up Spitfire Way. I tried following him to see the registration plate but when I couldn't I had to find somewhere safe to pull over."

The incident on the evening of September 13 has led Mr Davidson to appeal for any witnesses.

"Annoyingly I do have dashcam fitted but I had not got round to wiring it up," he explained.

"Another driver did managed to find a video of the other car speeding in the moments leading up to the crash, which has been submitted to police, but if anyone else finds footage that would be fantastic.

"It goes to show that if you have a dashcam, make sure its on before you set off on your journeys even if your route only takes you 10 minutes!"

If you have any information regarding the crash, contact police on 101 and use crime reference CAD 13-1096.