Part of the fun of owning a Jeep can be taking it off-road, if that’s a thing that interests you. Here’s the problem with driving far from paved roads, though: when someone’s vehicle breaks down or there’s an accident, specialized towing equipment and staff are involved. That’s how one driver ended up with a $48,000 bill that neither he nor his insurance want to pay.

Off-roading a Jeep into a mud pit sounds super fun, but that’s how the owner of this vehicle ended up in a mud pit and in a lot of trouble. He didn’t know that the land he was riding on belonged to a utility company, and was arrested for trespassing and disturbing the peace. He also owes a lot of money to get his vehicle back, and the towing company has placed a lien on it.

The towing company says that their high bill reflects the elevated danger level: the Jeep was a in a swamp, not in a mud pit as the owner claims, and getting the vehicle out was a risky seven-man job. There were power lines near the swamp, making the job even more dangerous.

That might be so, but when insurance industry experts looked at the bill for the Jeep rescue, they pointed out to Fox Boston that items on it that normally would have cost a third as much elsewhere. It also had services that the industry group has never heard of, like “dangerous condition liability insurance.” Whatever that is, they want $5,000 for it according to his itemized bill.

The customer doesn’t want to pay this bill, and neither does his insurance, so the Jeep is hanging out in limbo for now with a lien on it.

UPDATE: MA tow association says $48,000 tow bill in excess [Fox Boston]

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