If you are going to have an accident after 76 years of incident-free motoring, you might as well do it in style - though that was the last thing on Jack Higgs's mind as he hurtled towards two Porsches.
The 93-year-old, who had received not so much as a parking ticket since he began driving at 17, caused £60,000 worth of damage to the two sports cars after losing control of his Ford Fiesta.
Mr Higgs, a retired Pentecostal minister, was parking next to a Porsche showroom when his car shot backwards.
First, his 13-year-old hatchback hit a gleaming red Carrera II which acted as a ramp, causing Mr Higgs's car to flip over on to a silver Porsche 911 parked alongside.
Staff in the showroom ran outside to be confronted by a scene of wreckage and Mr Higgs hanging upside down by his seatbelt in his overturned car.
Dave Coombs, a dealer at the showroom in Penarth, near Cardiff, said on Monday: "It was amazing. We could hardly believe our eyes at the damage.
"He managed to get himself free and walked out without a scratch. But the Porsches were a real mess.
"There was glass and bits of broken metal everywhere, but Jack is such a gentleman he asked for a sweeping brush to help clear them up.
"But we walked him to his home for a cup of sweet tea while the breakdown trucks arrived to tow away the cars.
"I'm not too concerned about the cars - what matters is that Jack survived which is incredible considering his great age."
The widower is well-known to staff at the garage, RS Porsche, because he lives next door.
He is allowed to drive across the forecourt to reach his garage almost every day - something he has been doing for the last 45 years without any hitches.
He cannot explain how he managed to lose control of his car and smash into the pristine Porsches on this occasion.
One of the cars was a write-off while the other was badly damaged and will need extensive repairs.
Both cars were privately owned and were in the garage for servicing. The cost of Mr Higgs's first accident in 76 years was put at £60,000 - which will be met by his insurance company.
His blue Fiesta, worth £600, was also a write-off but it will not matter because the pensioner has decided to quit the roads.
Mr Higgs, who has driven more than half-a-million miles in his lifetime, said on Monday: "I can't understand it, nothing like this has happened to me before.
"I've been driving since I was 17, have a clean licence and have never even picked up so much as a parking ticket.
"I just don't know what happened except that I lost control as I was reversing and suddenly I had hit the cars.
"The next thing I knew I was hanging upside down in my car thanking my lucky stars I was still alive."
Mr Higgs was given the all-clear after being checked over by paramedics.
He added: "It was a miracle I got out alive and I put it down to the power of prayer and God looking after me.
"But that's it - the end of my driving career, I'm never driving again. I'll have to get lifts or go on the bus in future."
it's amazing though that he didn't get any injuries despite his high age.
