ILL FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

With new ILL procedures, this may help in answering customer questions.
Interlibrary Loan (ILL) Frequently Asked Questions

1. What do we do about articles with charges to the customer?
a. If an article comes with a charge, follow the set procedure already previously established. The article will come with an envelope marked “C.O.D.” attached with the patron’s name, the ILL transaction number, the cost of the article, and the name of the lending library. The patron will need to provide a check or money order made out to the lending library for the specified amount before receiving the article.

2. How do we handle ILL items that a patron claims he/she returned?
a. Find out where the patron returned the item. Check with that location and request a shelf check.
b. If the item is not found, notify the ILL office and they will request a shelf check from the lending library.
c. Put a note in the patron’s library card record about the shelf check request.

3. What do we do about lost and/or damaged ILL items?
a. Contact the ILL office to report the item lost or damaged.
b. ILL will contact the lending library to get the cost of the item and get back with the patron within 48 hours.

4. How do we handle an Overdue/Billed item that is returned?
a. First, check the condition of the item. If the item is in good condition, check it in and return it to ILL. (If the lending library sends damaged items, ILL does NOT send them to the patrons. They return them to owning libraries.)
b. The patron will still be responsible for fines, the processing fee and the collection fee, if applicable.

5. The new ILL form asks for an email address. What happens if the patron does not have email?
a. The form asks the patron to use the ill.info@houstontx.gov email address if they do not have one.
b. Once the item arrives, the notification is automated and the customer will be notified with an automated phone message if the library card account does not have an email address.

6. What if a patron calls for a renewal because they are out of town and not able to return the book by its due date?
a. Politely remind the patron that ILL items are not eligible for renewal and let him/her know that fines will accrue until the item is returned.

7. What do we do if a patron wants to request an item that’s not in the Texasgroup catalog or Worldcat?
a. Have the patron call ILL. Occasionally there are items, such as deed records on microfilm, that ILL staff need to request directly from the owning institution.

8. How do we handle ILL items that are currently on the hold shelves?
a. Those items will still be handled the old way.
b. As new items arrive, they will either have a purple label with a pre-printed barcode or a label with a barcode attached to the top of the label. These items will be circulated through Millennium following the new ILL circulation procedures.

JMR