EPL charges late fees primarily as a motivator for customers to return borrowed materials in a timely manner. While late fees represent a source of revenue for EPL, the revenue stream is not their primary purpose.
When forgiving amounts on customer accounts, use Payment Type: FORGIVEN. When correcting a Library error, use Payment Type: CANCEL.
A. LATE FEES
Staff members are expected to advise customers of any amount owing during staff-mediated transactions.
Forgiving late fees for customers is an exception. Staff members must not create the expectation that charges will be forgiven on an ongoing basis.
In all cases, it is expected that staff members review the borrower’s bill history (paid bills) before deciding whether or not to forgive late fees. If the bill history indicates a pattern, e.g., a large forgiven amount [$100 or more] or several charges [5 or more] forgiven within the visible bill history [currently 6 months], charges may not be forgiven.
In instances where a portion of the charge is forgiven, the customer is expected to pay his/her portion of the charge before any amount is waived.
Overdue fees for Interlibrary Loan items are waived only in very rare circumstances, and must be approved by the Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services.
1. Circumstances beyond customer’s control
Late fees may be forgiven in situations where circumstances may be beyond the customer’s control. Some examples of these situations may include:
Customer unaware of materials with one-week loan periods and returned them after three weeks.
Natural disaster (fire, flood, etc.).
Death in the family.
Illness or hospitalization.
Family emergency.
Fleeing an unsafe situation.
Other circumstances at staff discretion.
2. Customer is responsible for late fees
Staff will use discretion and may forgive late fees up to $25.00. Staff are expected to discuss amounts over $25.00 with the service point Manager.
Service point Managers will use discretion and may forgive late fees up to $100.00. It is expected that the service point Manager discuss amounts over $100.00 with the Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services, who will liaise with the Director, Collection Management and Access for approvals up to $500, and with the Executive Director, Public Services on amounts over $500. The Manager will generally retain responsibility for all direct communication with the customer in these cases.
In situations where EPL forgives $100.00 or more in late fees, the customer’s card is changed from a standard EPL-ADULT/EPL-JUV to a restricted-borrowing card (10 items for $100-$250 waived; 5 items for $250-$500 waived; 1 item for $500+ waived) for a minimum of one year. A standard note will be placed on the customer’s card listing the date when full borrowing privileges may be reinstated. Under extenuating circumstances (natural disasters), this limitation may be waived by the Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services in consultation with the Executive Director, Public Services.
B. LOST/DAMAGED ITEMS – REPLACEMENT COSTS
EPL charges for lost and damaged items to recoup Library materials expenditures. When a customer is billed for a lost item, the fee reimburses the Library for the item’s replacement cost plus a handling fee representing staff effort associated with making the item available for use.
Bills for the replacement costs of Lost or Damaged items are not usually forgiven. With this in mind, a service point Manager may forgive the bill for a single lost or damaged item at their discretion.
Managers must consult with the Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services who will liaise with the Director, Collection Management and Access, when forgiving more than a single lost or damaged item, or with the Executive Director, Public Services when forgiving amounts for material totaling more than $500.00. The Manager will generally retain responsibility for all direct communication with the customer in these cases.
It is expected that staff members ask customers whether it is possible for them to claim their loss through an insurance policy.
Lost charges for Interlibrary Loan items are waived only in very rare circumstances, and must be approved by the Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services.
1. Situations in which Lost charges can be forgiven:
Theft:
Insured: Customers who have Library material stolen from their home or vehicle may have insurance that covers the replacement costs. The staff member is expected to provide a printout of the account for the borrower to forward to the insurance company. Charges are not paid until the insurance claim is settled.
Uninsured/Unable to claim: Customers without insurance may have the replacement costs forgiven. For significant losses of $100 or more, a copy of the Edmonton Police Service Witness Statement Form is forwarded to the Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services.
Natural disaster:
Insured: Customers who lose Library material due to tornadoes, floods or fire may have insurance that covers the replacement costs of Library items. It is expected that staff provide a printout of the account for the borrower to forward to the insurance company. Charges are not paid until the insurance claim is settled.
Uninsured/Unable to claim: Customers without insurance may have lost charges forgiven. Please send a printout indicating waived amounts due to natural disasters to the Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services.
Death in the family:
The family of a deceased borrower may be unable to locate lost Library material. These materials may be checked out to discard.
Unsafe situations:
A borrower who leaves an unsafe family situation and is unable to retrieve Library material may have bills forgiven.
2. Fraud/identity theft:
Borrowing patterns sometimes help verify that a customer’s card has been used without his/her permission. The Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services may forgive lost items on accounts in which this situation applies. The Associate Manager will work with the Director, Collection Management and Access (over $100) and the Executive Director, Public Services (over $500) when forgiving items in these situations.
C. UMS REFERRAL FEE
The $15 fee that is applied to customer accounts upon referral to UMS is generally not negotiable with customers and cannot be waived. In exceptional circumstances, this fee may be waived by the Associate Manager, Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services. Staff are expected to consult the Associate Manager Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Services in any instance where waiving this fee may be considered.
D. PARTIAL PAYMENT AGREEMENTS
The Library does not make formal partial payment agreements with customers. When a card is blocked, borrowing privileges are affected. If a card’s status changes to "Collections" due to an outstanding balance, borrowing privileges are not restored until the balance owing reaches $0. If a blocked card has not been referred to UMS (it does not have the status "Collections"), borrowing privileges are restored when the balance falls below the $10 threshold.
Customers may pay outstanding charges incrementally. The Library prefers that lost items are paid for in full, but customers are not required to pay all outstanding bills at once.
NOTE: Customers paying fees online do not currently have the option of paying incrementally: online payments can only be accepted for the total amount owing.
E. REPLACEMENT COPIES
The Library will not accept new copies of items from customers in lieu of paying the replacement costs for Lost or Damaged items.