Overdue Fees
If library materials are not returned on the date due, $.05 per day per overdue item will be charged. The maximum overdue bill for items that are returned is $1.00 per item.
Billing for Item Replacement
If an item is six weeks overdue, the Library will assume that the item is lost, and your account will be billed for replacement of the item. If the item is returned, the bill for replacement will be removed from your account. Overdue fees will still apply. This may cause an account to have borrowing privileges blocked.
Blocked Account Status
Borrowing privileges will be blocked if the estimated or actual bills on your account are $30.00 or more. When the amount owed on the account is reduced below $30.00, borrowing privileges will be restored unless the account has been referred to an outside agency for material recovery.
Referral for Material Recovery
If the total of bills owed exceeds $100.00, the account will be referred to a material recovery agency. At that time, a $20.00 service fee will be added to the total amount owed for this referral to an outside service. Once an account has been referred for material recovery, the balance must be fully resolved (balance of $0.00) in order for full borrowing privileges to be restored. The Library works with an external agency in these cases to return as many items as possible to circulation for other customers.
Charges for Lost or Damaged Items
If an item is six weeks overdue, it will be assumed that the item is lost, and your account will be billed for the item. If an item is returned damaged, your account will be billed for the item. Charges for replacement of lost or damaged MCPL materials will be determined by the list price of the item as indicated in the item record.
Charges for Lost or Damaged InterLibrary Loan Items
Charges for lost or damaged materials borrowed through interlibrary loan from other library systems vary. Some library systems levy service charges in addition to the actual item cost. Because of this variability, MCPL will charge a standard rate based on an average cost of the type of material borrowed, as determined by national library standards, plus any processing fees, based on average costs assessed by lending libraries.
To find out the amount due on a particular lost or damaged item, please contact your local branch.