A Bristol woman whose car was stolen off her drive in the middle of the night has thanked the police for their persistence in tracking it down.

Occupational health worker Sue Burke, 49, had her £25,000 VW Eos taken from her home in Logan Road, Bishopston, after burglars broke into her house.

Just 12 hours later her car was written off in a police chase along the A38 after it smashed into four vehicles in Churchill.

Two men aged 17 and 19 were arrested on suspicion of burglary. Two women who were also in the car were taken in for questioning.

Mrs Burke and her husband were asleep when thieves broke into their home last Friday morning, and did not hear anything.

The thieves also took a laptop, mobile phones and a purse containing bank card and cash.

"It seems they jimmied open a window to get into my office which I use as a base because I work from home," said Mrs Burke.

"It was just a day after we had a fire in our bathroom, so it hadn't been a great week.

"I contacted the police not expecting very much but they kept calling me to tell me what was going on and telling me where my car had been spotted being driven on various CCTV cameras.

"It was horrifying to think that someone has been inside your home while you're asleep going through your things.

"As the victim it feels much better to know someone is being held to blame for the grief they have caused you.

"I work from home and not having a computer, phone or car is a real inconvenience to say the least."

Officers in a marked police car spotted Mrs Burke's car and called the police helicopter for the chase, which ended in a crash.

No one was seriously injured, although the A38 was closed for five hours while the debris was removed from the road and police carried out their investigation.

In a letter to Chief Constable Colin Port, Mrs Burke wrote: "Over the course of last Friday and the weekend we came into contact with at least 10 of your officers or staff and they were, without exception, professional and effective in all that they have did.

"Throughout this time they kept us informed and always treated us with the utmost courtesy.

"The police force does not always get a good press but when your officers achieve something like this in such a professional way and working so efficiently as a team, it underlines what an effective organisation you are.

"Certainly we and many of our friends have been very impressed and now feel very supportive of you."

Mrs Burke will have to make a claim from four different insurance policies to replace what was taken in the burglary.

Although the police car was not involved in the collision on the A38 south of Bristol, Avon and Somerset police has voluntarily referred the case to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.