A mum whose unborn child was killed in a high-speed car crash has spoken of her devastating loss - but says being pregnant saved her life.

City banker Leroy Margolis, 29, of Manville Road, Tooting, was the driver of the other vehicle and has now been jailed for two years after a jury found him guilty of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

The chartered accountant smashed into the oncoming car being driven by mum-to-be Louise Abbott, 28, after ricocheting off a traffic island he claimed "appeared out of nowhere" as he overtook a lorry. He was described at Cambridge Crown Court as an "impatient and impetuous driver."

The following day Mrs Abbot delivered baby Layla naturally - but the baby died from head injuries sustained from seatbelt trauma, the court heard.

Following the hearing, Mrs Abbot, from near Braintree, in Essex, said she hoped others would learn a lesson from the tragedy - about the devastation dangerous driving can cause.

She said: "After the delivery I did not want to see Layla at first. I was worried about her condition because I had been told that the head injury had killed her.

“I felt a real mix of emotions. It felt strange that I had survived the accident but Layla had not made it.

“I was told by a couple of doctors that had I not been pregnant, I would not have survived. Nothing can ever bring Layla back but it seems to me that maybe she was there to save me and that she was my guardian angel.

“A few months after the accident, I found out I was pregnant again with a second child and I have just given birth to a beautiful baby girl, Avery. I found it very difficult to come to terms with the pregnancy at first. I was so scared that another crash might take another one of my children.

"My husband Laurence and I spent many nights crying and hoping that the anxiety would ease, which thankfully it eventually did.

“We have always been clear that our newborn daughter would not be a replacement for Layla, who will always be a part of our family.”

Margolis was sentenced on October 11 when he also received a four-year driving ban.