A DISQUALIFIED driver who crashed into a house whilst racing his sports car at 80mph has escaped with a "pitifully" lenient sentence, it was claimed today.

Usman Hussain lost control of his Toyota MR2 and slewed across the opposite carriageway, over the pavement and slammed into the side of a house in Leeds Close, Blackburn, last September.

Hussain, who went on to commit other driving offences, left the scene before police arrived despite suffering significant injuries.

Blackburn magistrates heard the speed of the competing cars was estimated as high as 80 mph by one witness who described how she was "horrified" to find herself driving three abreast along Audley Range.

But despite the chairman saying that somebody could have been killed as a result of the "appalling" incident Hussain was only charged with driving without due care and attention.

Today a motoring group said he should have faced a charge of dangerous driving and a two year jail term.

And a neighbour of the damaged Twin Valley Homes-owned house, which is still being repaired, said it was just luck that Hussain did not kill anybody.

Hussain, 21, of Kempton Rise, Blackburn, pleaded guilty to driving while disqualified, without insurance, without due care and attention, failing to stop and failing to report an accident.

He was also charged with driving while disqualified and without insurance on December 2 and driving while disqualified and without insurance on April 20.

He was jailed for 174 days for the disqualified driving offences and banned from driving for four years.

Passing sentence the chairman said the incident on Audley Range had been appaling.

"You were racing and somebody could have been killed," he said.

One witness to the crash told today how the car almost struck her home.

The 50-year-old woman also slammed the sentence as pitiful and said people had been walking next to the house that was hit minutes before the crash.

She said: "Then I heard a bang and when I opened my window the red car was there. The car was still running and looked like it was going to blow up. I said to people, stay away, because it was dangerous.

"If someone had been in the house it could have killed them.

"The boy was lucky, I don't know how he survived."

Pat Bramley, prosecuting, said another witness was driving along Audley Range towards town when a white car overtook.

Miss Bramley added: "The driver noticed to her horror that a red vehicle was also overtaking and for a moment they were travelling three abreast."

Aftab Bakhat, defending, said Hussain had previously been jailed for drug dealing offences.

Kevin Delaney, for motoring group The RAC Foundation, said: "Dangerous driving is a deliberate act, where as driving without due care and attention is making a mistake. The facts presented indicated this was not careless driving but blatant, dangerous driving.

"I do not know why the CPS made this decision, but it could have been because it meant they could easily get a guilty plea rather than charging him with dangerous driving, getting a not guilty plea and not being able to prove it."

No one from the Crown Prosecution Service was available for comment.