Drivers of diesel cars in the Netherlands pay an average of almost €700 a month to keep their cars on the road, the highest figure in Europe, according to the annual survey by company car leasing firm LeasePlan.

This is nearly twice the cost of running a diesel car in Hungary and considerably higher than in the UK where diesel drivers are €435 a month out of pocket. The survey covered the cost of driving in 24 European countries.

The high cost of diesel motoring in the Netherlands is partly due to various car-related taxes, which are the highest in Europe, the survey showed. Dutch tax on petrol-driven cars is the second-highest in Europe after Norway. However, insurance costs are highest in Switzerland, the report said.

LeasePlan said it is the ownership, not the use of cars, that makes them expensive.

Along with garage lobby group Bovag and many other bodies, LeasePlan is urging the government to adopt a kilometer charge on the use of cars. This would shift the burden of taxation to the use of rather than ownership of cars, the company said.