A FAMILY say they are too terrified to go into their garage - because it is infested with a venomous foreign SPIDER.

Steve Benham says his home has become a breeding ground for the species Segestria Florentina.

They can grow up to more than an inch and cause painful venomous bites.

Steve says his garage has been taken over and when it is dark the females can be seen peeking out from their burrows - ready to attack.

Mr Benham has been bitten once on the arm which swelled up to such an extent that he had to be taken to hospital - but the venom fortunately did not spread to his chest.

He said: "At night time, you put your torch on and all you see is these jet black spiders, loads of them.

"I don't go into the garage at night anymore, doing that is like putting your hand into a tiger's mouth."

The spiders, originally from the Mediterranean, tunnel into bricks and multiply and Mr Benham believes there are hundreds of them in his home, in Weston super Mare.

He sent pictures to the Natural History Museum who identified the spiders and confirmed they are not native to the UK.

The museum said the spiders are coming into the country on boxes from warehouses in Europe.

Pest control tried to rid his home of the infestation but the spiders came back two weeks later.

Mr Benham's family now makes sure not to leave any doors open to prevent any more spiders making their way into the home.