A MAN had to be cut free from his car after a three-car pile-up during rush-hour.

Motorists faced chaos after the smash just before 8.30am yesterday when the driver of a Skoda Roomster, travelling along Cranes Farm Road, lost control.

He mounted the grass verge and his car ploughed into Gardiners Lane South where it struck a blue X-type Jaguar and a white Nissan lorry. The Skoda was so badly damaged firefighters had to cut the roof off the car to free its driver, a man aged in his 50s, who was taken to Basildon Hospital suffering minor injuries.

Paramedic Brendan Saich said: "Considering what happened and the level of damage to the car he was driving, it appears he has had a very lucky escape."

The drivers of the Jaguar and lorry were uninjured. Police said despite the seriousness of the crash, traffic officers dealt with the aftermath quickly and the roads did not have to be closed.

Bill Nathan, of JCB Skoda, in Miles Gray Road, Basildon, which owned the car, said the driver was "completely all right".

He would not say if the driver was a staff member or a member of the public.

Mr Nathan said the 4x4's crumple zone had worked effectively, protecting the occupant.