GREENSBORO, NC -- It showed up in a 2 Wants To Know viewer's mailbox -- an envelope, claiming to contain important documents.

The envelope reads, "second notice, time sensitive." The letter inside says you qualify for a state-regulated program paying for your final expenses -- including 100 percent of funeral costs. If that doesn't sound suspicious enough, the name of the person or agency who sent the mail is nowhere to be found.

That's why a 2 Wants To Know viewer thought the mailer sounded suspicious. She brought the mailer to the news station and asked our team to verify -- is this funeral insurance offer a scheme?

Sources:

To verify whether the mailer is a scheme, we used two credible sources: the Better Business Bureau of Central North Carolina and Senn Dunn, a North Carolina independent insurance agency.

Verify Process:

Senn Dunn agent Tim Ward explained you can use any life insurance policy to pay for final expenses, but there are state-regulated burial policies you can purchase through a funeral service. That means, what the mailer is offering is real, but who is offering it?

The return address on the envelope is vague. It says 'Records Division' in Marietta, GA. But, the business reply insert is addressed to a company called Direct Data Services. The company is legitimate, but on the BBB website, it has a dozen complains -- the majority for marketing practices (like mailers offering state-regulated funeral insurance).

Turns out, the St. Louis BBB investigated Direct Data Services for a nearly-identical mailer addressed to Missouri residents. But, this is the first time the BBB's Lechelle Yates has seen it in the Triad.

"The company behind this is actually collecting information for insurance agents, but you have no way to know that by looking at the card," Yates said.

She explained, "We're afraid people are going to misled in thinking they're getting some state-sponsored insurance, when they're really setting themselves up to potentially get phone calls from an insurance agent who's then going to try to sell them something."

Yates re-emphasized a BBB's rule of thumb.

"You never want to send personal information, unless you know exactly who sent it and what they're going to do with it."

Also, contact your existing insurance agent about what's already included in your life insurance policy.

Verify Conclusion:

So, deceptive business practice? Maybe, and the BBB plans to follow up with Direct Data Services about transparency. But, we can verify, this mailer is not a scheme.