Two petrol station owners in the border area with Germany and Belgium are planning to take the Dutch state to court because of the impact of high taxes on their businesses.

Car sector lobby group Bovag says the two companies have been seriously hit by high Dutch petrol and diesel taxes which have led their customers to cross the border to fill up.

This year, the two firms are in a ‘structurally loss-making position’. They are demanding compensation for their losses from the Dutch state. The case will be heard on January 20.

Despite protests from hundreds of petrol station owners about the taxes, which make it much cheaper to buy petrol and diesel in Belgium and Germany, the government says it has no plans to reduce the tax.