This is the shocking moment an unsuspecting dad drives over his own son and a pal hiding under cardboard on the road with both boys surviving.

The incident was filmed in the village of Xiaoba in Huichang County located in the landlocked Chinese province of Jiangxi last month with the story appearing in local media this week.

In the footage, two young boys are seen making a tunnel out of flattened cardboard in the road before both disappearing under it.

A van driver suddenly appears and, presumably thinking it is just rubbish in the road, drives over the cardboard.

The van’s wheels apparently drive over a body and the motorist stops in the road.

In that moment, one of the boys appears holding his head while his pal lies motionless on the ground.

The man checks on the boy before running off to apparently call for help.

According to local media, the motionless boy turned out to be the van driver’s five-year-old son.

Both boys were taken to hospital for treatment. The driver’s son was diagnosed with a skull fracture, intracranial haemorrhaging, a chest injury, a brain stem injury, and a lacerated lung.

The boys are said to be in a non-life-threatening condition.

It is unclear if the local authorities are investigating the incident.