A newly-qualified driver “laughed and told passengers ‘watch this’” before crashing her car at more than double the speed limit.

Amy Smith crashed her Volkswagen Golf into two parked cars, severely injuring herself and four passengers.

The 18-year-old, from Peartree Close, Milton-under-Wychwood, had passed her driving test five days before the accident on June 26 last year.

She was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court yesterday after admitting dangerous driving.

Prosecutor Jonathan Stone said Smith overtook a friend’s car just before entering a 30mph zone in Leafield where she lost control and clipped the kerb. At the crash scene, the car’s speedometer was stuck on 70mph.

He said passenger Thomas Gonzales “recalls the defendant saying ‘watch this’ and refers to the defendant laughing...as the vehicle lost control”.

All passengers suffered whiplash, cuts and bruises, and Smith broke her leg.

Clare Fraser, defending, said Smith had since suffered post-traumatic stress disorder and depression and lost the friendships of her passengers.

Smith was given a year’s supervision and told to do 100 hours of unpaid work, with a four-day restorative justice requirement.

She must also pay £275 costs and £400 compensation, and was banned from driving for three years. She must sit an extended re-test.

Recorder Nicholas Cole said: “This accident could very easily have resulted in the death of one or more young people.”