[ILL-L] Best way to avoid charges?

[Britt, Kathy]

If you put $15 in your maxcost, then the lending library can charge you regardless of what other additional notes you put in.  If you want to be notified in advance, remove the $15 from your maxcost and just put either $0 or just say "pls cond with charges."  Libraries cannot charge you if you have $0 in your maxcost.

Kathy

-----Original Message-----
From: ill-l-bounces at webjunction.org [mailto:ill-l-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Harbin, Jeff E.
Sent: Thursday, December 17, 2009 1:22 PM
To: ill-l at webjunction.org
Subject: [ILL-L] Best way to avoid charges?

What is the best way to avoid being charged for borrowing ILL?

Maybe I'm asking for too much here, but I hope there's someone else out there who's had experience with this predicament.  TMJ's constant data records have included "PLEASE CONDITIONAL if you charge!" in the Borrowing Notes since before I took over ILL nearly a year ago, but we still get charged by lending libraries (who have not conditionaled my requests) on a regular basis.  Just yesterday I received two invoices in the mail (though we prefer IFM) from libraries who charged me for a loan well after the transaction had been completed.

I have my maximum cost set to $15 so we can still borrow from libraries who do charge us.  Essentially, I'm ok with paying necessary charges most of the time--our grad students request theses on a regular basis, and I understand why charges are usually associated there--but I'd like to know that I'm being charged before I'm sent the item so I can pursue a free option if one is available.  Does that make sense?  I don't like charges snuck in there because the lending library didn't bother to read my borrowing note.

Would it be better to set my max cost to $0?  My only fear there is that libraries who do charge would just reply "No" without a conditional.  Again, I'm fine with paying charges via IFM if necessary, but both my library director and I would like to keep costs down as much as possible, and being more proactive and aware of charges seems like a good first step.

Perhaps just thinking out loud, on a listerv. I appreciate any ideas.  Thanks as always!

Jefferson E. Harbin
Public Services Librarian
P.H. Welshimer Memorial Library
Milligan College
(423) 461-8495
jeharbin at milligan.edu


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