Sharpsville woman accused of buying insurance minutes after crash, then filing claim

A Sharpsville woman faces felony and misdemeanor charges after allegedly attempting to defraud an insurance company by claiming a vehicle accident occurred after she purchased her policy, according to court documents.

Savannah Laurel May Stinedurf, 30, is charged with false/fraudulent/incomplete insurance claim, a third-degree felony, and criminal attempt - theft by deception, a first-degree misdemeanor.

According to a criminal complaint filed by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, Stinedurf obtained a Progressive Insurance policy for her 2017 Ford Escape at 1:27 p.m. on Jan. 3, 2025. Later that day, she contacted the insurer to report a motor vehicle accident, stating it occurred around 1:50 p.m. and that she had purchased the policy 20 minutes before the collision.

The complaint states that Progressive Insurance contacted the mother of the other driver, who indicated her daughter took photos of the damage at the accident scene. The metadata on the photos showed they were taken at 1:20 p.m., prior to Stinedurf obtaining the insurance policy.

According to the affidavit of probable cause, Stinedurf allegedly admitted to investigators that she did not have insurance at the time of the accident and obtained the policy afterward at the scene. When asked why she reported the policy was purchased before the accident, she allegedly stated she wanted the other vehicle's damages to be covered.

Progressive Insurance had set aside $1,000 for the claim.

Stinedurf was preliminarily arraigned Thursday before Magisterial District Judge Travis P. Martwinski, with bail set at $15,000. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 28 at 10:30 a.m. before the same judge.