A BURGLAR crashed a BMW just 20 metres from where it was stolen after a dad jumped in his son's car to try to stop the thief.

Thieves took money, laptops, phones and car keys from the house in Talbot Street in Rishton.

Eric Bailey, who lives in the house with wife Janet and son Anthony, said he heard someone downstairs in his house at around 6am yesterday.

He went downstairs and saw a man getting in his son’s BMW 140i and ran out and got in the car trying to stop him.

He also saw a second man on the opposite side of the street who ran off.

The thief then accelerated before hitting a parked car and flipping the vehicle just 20 metres from where it was stolen, leaving Mr Bailey to crawl out of the car.

The 53-year-old said: “It was terrifying, it all just happened so quick.

“I just ran out to try to stop him. He was struggling with the gear stick, he must have panicked.

“Then seconds later the car was on its roof and I was crawling out.

“My son’s devastated, he’s not long bought the car brand new.

“It was just completely out of the blue.

“I have no idea how they got into the house.

“I’m just so angry.”

The driver then crawled out of the car and ran away.

Mr Bailey said he was left with minor injuries to his neck and cuts to his face following the crash.

He said his son’s car was expected to be written off following the incident.

Mrs Bailey, 52, said: “It’s not settled in properly.

“We’ve had so many people coming round to speak to us about what happened.

“You just think why us?”

Son Anthony, 28, took to social media to ask anyone who saw anything in Rishton to come forward.

In a Facebook post he said: “If you thought you was having a bad day...my house was robbed, brand new car stolen and crash, phones stolen, laptops stolen, wallet stolen.

“If anyone hears/sees anything in Rishton area let me know.”

Some of the contents from the stolen wallets were found later nearby in Spring Street.

Several other vehicles were also badly damaged after being hit by the car as it overturned.

A Talbot Street resident said: “I couldn’t believe it.

“I just heard a long bang and came outside and saw a car flipped over and a man crawling out. I was speechless.

“You just have to hope the family are OK and the people responsible get caught.”

The family said police came round to their house following the incident to look for evidence to help identify the thieves.

A police spokesman said on Twitter: “A high performance BMW stolen as a result of a burglary in Rishton.

“Very inexperienced driver got only 20 metres from the address when they hit a parked car and rolled.”