It was tree 1, supercar 0, as one of the most exclusive British supercars just became a little less common after the new owner of a McLaren 650S managed to crash it 10 minutes after taking delivery of it.

The accident happened in Essex last week. Neighbours reported seeing the man celebrating with a bottle of champagne as the new car arrived at his house. But within minutes the sleek lines of the £215,000 supercar had been reduced to a mangled lump of carbon-fibre and metal after the driver lost control and ploughed into a tree.

The 650S features a twin-turbocharged V8 engine and can hit 60mph in less than 3sec. Acceleration is so fierce that it will reach 100mph in the time most family cars take to reach 30mph (5.7sec) and can continue all the way up to a top speed of 204mph.

No-one was injured in the crash last Wednesday, but police have appealed for information from anyone who may have witnessed the McLaren being driven before the crash. They say enquiries are on-going to determine who was driving the car at the time.