A MAN steered to hit a rat and lost control of his car leading to an accident which killed his life-long friend, a court heard.

Iain Selby, 23, was driving his twin James and two friends who live opposite them in Hinton Martell, Mark and Matthew Lambert, to a pub in Wimborne to celebrate Mark's 26th birthday when the crash claimed Mark's life.

A jury at Bournemouth Crown Court heard that a few hundred metres from the men's home in Ashbury Cottages, James Selby spotted a rat and his brother manoeuvred his black Peugeot 306 to try and run it over.

Prosecuting, James Patrick said: "The Crown case is not careless but dangerous driving, deliberately swerving at an animal."

Fencing contractor James Selby, 23, told the court: "I pointed out a rat and suddenly the back of the car swung round and we started to snake along the road.

"I asked the people in the back if they had seat belts on and put mine on. I asked Iain what was going on and he said he could not control the car. I came round in the upside-down car."

The jury heard how the car hit a bank, severed a tree and ended up upside down. The four men were trapped in the damaged car until a couple passing by stopped to help.

The Selby brothers managed to climb out of the car and Iain, who was not injured, later told the police that he had seen the Lamberts hanging from their seatbelts but that he could not get them to respond.

Iain called the emergency services on his mobile and his and the Lamberts' parents Paul and Sue arrived on the scene.

James Selby suffered a cut to his head needing 20 stitches and he spent a couple of nights in hospital.

Bournemouth Airport employee Mark Lambert was airlifted to Poole Hospital and later transferred to Southampton Hospital where he died the following day, October 19, four days before his 26th birthday.

His 19-year-old brother Matt was taken to the intensive care unit at Southamp- ton and stayed in hospital for some time.

Iain Selby, who works for an insurance company in Wimborne, denied steering harshly to hit the rat.

He told the court: "I have for seven or eight months thought about it non-stop and I still do not know why what happened happened. I just can't make sense of what happened."

Selby denies causing death by dangerous driving and the case continues today.