This is the terrifying moment a wild elephant shoved a family's car in Thailand.

The tourists were driving through the Khao Yai National Park in Nakhon Ratchasima province when the jumbo sauntering on the road approached their vehicle to search for food on December 10.

Footage shows the passengers cowering inside their car as the elephant began ramming the door, denting it and shattering the windows.

Chaiya Huayhongthong, director of the Khao Yai National Park, said the elephant was attracted to the smell of strawberries wafting from the car's open window.

However, the unnamed female driver, speaking through her social media page 'Sai Mai Tong Rod', refuted the 'damaging' statement.

She said the elephant ambled over as the car was stopped in traffic, adding she could not speed away as she feared she would spook the massive animal.

She said: 'The news is not true. We never opened the windows to feed the elephants, and we didn't even plan to stop the car to take pictures because our children were with us. The news that came out caused our family a lot of damage.

'To the Khao Yai National Park, check the facts and correct the news. I feel sorry for my children. They must have been shocked. Fortunately, they are safe.'

As of 2023, there are an estimated 3,084-3,500 wild elephants in Thailand. The population has been increasing in recent years, but it is still a fraction of the estimated 300,000 wild elephants that lived in Thailand at the beginning of the 20th century. The main threats to wild elephants in Thailand are habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching, and conflict with humans.