MANCHESTER, N.H. —

For nearly a half-century, Deloris Evans thought her passing would not be a burden for her family. Decades ago, she bought a prepaid funeral plan.

"I got that when I was young, thinking I was prepared," Evans said.

But there was a big problem. She recently found out she was caught in a scam. She got this letter saying her pre-paid funeral contract is worthless and denied by the funeral home.

The FBI says the company behind it stole nearly half a billion dollars from families across 16 states.

The fraudsters went to prison more than a decade ago. Evans recovered just a few hundred dollars and must start over.

Today, there are better consumer protections. The Federal Trade Commission now enforces what's known as the funeral rule. The rule makes it possible for consum

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