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USPS · Work Style and Preferences

You find an envelope on your route that appears to contain cash, with no clear addressee. What should you do?

Reviewed by Jordan Morley, Editorial Lead at 247SimpleTests. Written by the 247SimpleTests Editorial Team from the official source material cited on every question.

Correct answer

Turn it in to your supervisor and follow proper procedures for found or undeliverable items — never keep mail or its contents

  1. A Turn it in to your supervisor and follow proper procedures for found or undeliverable items — never keep mail or its contents
  2. B Keep it since there's no clear owner
  3. C Leave it where you found it
  4. D Give it to the nearest resident

Why this is the answer

INTEGRITY is paramount. Any found mail or item must be turned in to a supervisor and handled per proper procedures — NEVER kept, regardless of contents or unclear ownership. Keeping mail or its contents is theft of mail, a serious FEDERAL CRIME. Leaving it or giving it to a random resident are also improper. The 474 VEA (and the carrier role generally) places enormous weight on honesty and integrity — carriers are entrusted with the public's mail, including valuables, and must demonstrate unwavering honesty. This is a non-negotiable standard; the only correct action is to turn it in through proper channels.
Source: USPS 474 VEA — Integrity, Found Items

Practice more questions

This question is from our USPS Exam Practice Tests practice test. Take the full practice test to test your knowledge across all Work Style and Preferences and other topics.

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About this topic: Work Style and Preferences

Work style and preference items ask about your comfort with physical work, working alone, repetitive tasks and weather. These are self-report items; the carrier role is outdoors, physical and independent. This is one of 10 VEA 474 (Mail Carrier) questions on work style and preferences, each with a full explanation on a single study page.

New to this exam? Our USPS exam guide explains the format, scoring, and how to prepare.

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