INSURERS have had to pay out almost a six-figure sum to return Roy and Nancy Buckner's pride and joy to its blooming best.

Twelve months ago the bottom fell out of the couple's world when their garden and garage were swallowed up by the ground.

The lid of a huge septic tank hidden below ground at their Hampshire home gave way, taking the shed and most of the patio and garden with it.

One year on, a £98,000 clean-up operation has turned a scene of devastation back to normality.

The incredible sight that greeted the Buckners when they woke up one Saturday morning last February has been replaced with a flower-filled garden.

Retired Roy, 66, said: "It's all done and dusted now and has been put right, but it was a bit of a mess at the time.

"We had a very nice display in the summer months again this year and it's all looking lovely."

Grandfather Roy, a former builder, and wife Nancy, also 66, were woken by strange noises and feared thieves were trying to break into the garage of their home of eight years in Forest Gardens, Waltham Chase.

But instead they found it had slid into a 20ft long hole behind their 44-year-old home.

Roy added: "It was like something out of a film. I just couldn't believe my eyes. I nearly had a heart attack."

The couple are still determined to find out why the septic tank, designed to serve a group of houses built in 1960 before they were connected to the mains, has never been filled in.

The case looks likely to end up in court as insurers attempt to recover cash from local authorities and utilities firms.