A YORK home severely damaged when a car ran into it should not have to be demolished, say buildings inspectors.

Part of the front wall of a Garfield Terrace house collapsed after a car left the road and smashed into it earlier this week.

The two young tenants of the house were forced to evacuate their home as experts left the vehicle where it lay, fearing its removal might cause the building to collapse.

Engineers later supported the wall with specialist equipment, allowing the vehicle to be taken away and insurance loss adjusters to inspect the property.

A spokesman for City of York Council said building control inspectors expected that "substantial repairs" would be needed to the property, but it was unlikely that it would be demolished.

He said the residents would not be able to return to the property for several months.

Julie Stericker, of the Buy and Let Property Shop, which acts as the letting agent for the neighbouring property, said there seemed to be only "cosmetic damage" to her property.

She said a surveyor would inspect the property later this week to see if there was any hidden structural damage.

Updated: 11:13 Friday, December 06, 2002