STROUD shop owner Patrick Rollins is calling for tighter laws surrounding the way lorries can travel on UK motorways after his wife and four-year-old son were involved in a near fatal accident.

Mr Rollins, who owns Pure in King Street, Stroud, wants to hear from other motorists that have had similar experiences before contacting Stroud MP Neil Carmichael to ask him to lobby for the changes.

Emma Rollins and the couple’s son Milo were travelling from Cheltenham to Stroud on the M5 near Junction 12 when an articulated lorry collided with their car as it moved across from the middle to the inside lane.

Both mother and son managed to drag themselves from the wreckage while Mr Rollins traveled to the scene in a neighbour’s to the find the pair shocked but unharmed.

"It was the scariest day of my life," said Mr Rollins.

"Emma called me to tell me what had happened but she could not stop crying.

"As I approached the scene I knew Emma was alive but I started to feel very tearful and I feared the worse for our son, which thankfully was not the case.

"Anything that can avoid this sort of thing happening again would be a very worthwhile cause – I would not wish for anyone to go through that experience." Now he wants lorries to only ever use the left lane on UK motorways, as is the law on many European highways, particularly in Holland, Germany and France.

Anyone who wishes to share a similar story with Mr Rollins can contact him on 01453 764 350.