Hybrid Volvo car bursts into flames on Birmingham drive
A hybrid car caused £3,000 worth of damage to a family's home when it burst into flames on the driveway.
Miles Freeman and his fiancee Tanya Krupenko's Volvo XC90 was charging on their drive in Moseley, Birmingham, when it became engulfed in flames.
The couple immediately evacuated their three children and called the emergency services.
Volvo said "safety is at the core of everything it does" and that it had arranged a loan car for the family.
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Mr Freeman, 46, who owns a battery recycling company, had returned to his home with his family on Sunday evening when he put the car on charge.
At about 22:20 BST, he and Miss Krupenko were in the kitchen when she heard the car alarm going off.
Mr Freeman said: "She went to look outside and then shouted that the car was on fire.
"My instant reaction was to get the car away from the house, but it was too intense."
The couple grabbed their children - Olivia, five, Harrison, four, and seven-month-old Savannah - from their beds and safely made it outside.
"We managed to run across the driveway, and fire fighters were there in about five minutes," Mr Freeman added.
The car was left a charred wreck while the family home suffered £3,000 worth of damage.
The garage door suffered smoke damage, while the bay windows at the front of the house buckled.
Mr Freeman said he called Volvo's emergency number immediately, and has contacted them regularly since the fire.
But he said he was disappointed by the company's response to the blaze.
A spokesman for Volvo said: "At Volvo Cars, safety is at the core of everything we do.
"We are in regular contact with Mr Freeman regarding this incident and an inspection of the vehicle will take place shortly.
"We have arranged a loan car for him in the meantime."