Joe Biden shooting: Multiple shots fired outside Vice President's Delaware home

Secret Service agents saw a vehicle driving away at speed, though Mr Biden and his wife were not present at the time

President Barack Obama (right) is joined by Vice President Joe Biden as he delivers a statement on Syria in the Rose Garden (Getty Images)

Shots have been fired from a passing vehicle outside the home of the US Vice President in Delaware, Secret Service officials said.

At the time, Joe Biden and his wife Jill were not present at the house, which is several hundred yards from the main road where the shooting was believed to have occurred.

A Secret Service official said that security personnel inside the residence heard the shots, and that an agent saw a vehicle driving away from the scene “at high speed”.

Searches were due to be conducted outside the home and nearby residences in New Castle County to see if any buildings were hit by bullets.

The incident took place at around 8.25pm on Saturday night, according to Secret Service spokesperson Robert Hoback.

About half an hour later, a driver was arrested "for resisting arrest" while trying to pass a New Castle County police officer establishing a secure perimeter around the area. That person was to be questioned regarding the shooting, Hoback said.

Mr Biden's office said the Vice President and his wife were briefed about the incident on Saturday night, as was President Barack Obama.

The incident occurred as the Secret Service tries to recover from a series of security lapses. In September, a knife-carrying man jumped the White House fence and ran into the president's official residence.

Last week, the agency charged with protecting the president and vice president announced that it would remove four senior officials from their jobs and retire a fifth, as part of a shake-up intended to address the problem.

Additional reporting by agencies