This was the scene after a weeping willow collapsed on a car in a quiet residential street this week.

The tree, which residents claim had been leaning at a 30 degree angle for 10 years, suddenly collapsed on Tuesday evening.

Jeff Bragg, a tutor who was staying at his mother's house in St Helier Avenue on Tuesday night, said: "I was sitting inside at about 10.45pm in the evening and there was a big bang.

"It sounded like a wall had come down but when I looked outside I saw it was the tree."

The tree, which was as tall as a two storey home, fell on a Vauxhall car belonging to Mr Bragg's brother, who is a minicab driver.

Mr Bragg said the car is a right-off, but fortunately it has already been replaced after an insurance claim.

Louise Bragg, 89, who lived at the house when the tree was planted 40 years ago, said she has told Merton Council twice in the past three years she feared the tree would fall down.

However, she was allegedly assured by council officers the tree would survive another 10 years.

Mr Bragg said: "It was really frightening. It was so dangerous, it was leaning right over. I said to my boys it's going to come down."

A Merton Council spokeswoman said: “We were informed that the tree had fallen just after midnight on September 17, when our highway safety inspector went out to inspect the tree. 

"It was then removed by our contractor first thing that morning.”