Blocks Fines and Fees

Circulation Fines & Fees Policies

This page defines the privileges and responsibilities of persons who borrow materials from the Libraries at Texas Woman’s University. These are continually reviewed and revised by appropriate TWU administrators to reflect current library operations.

Blocks

Library privileges will be suspended and a registration block will be initiated for borrowers who fail to abide by University Policy 2.11. and TWU Libraries borrowing policies.

For Non-TWU Students, faculty and staff: When fines or fees reach $5.00, TWU library users will have their library and university privileges blocked. Blocked patrons will not be able to check out library materials, including laptops and reserve items, or use Interlibrary Loan.

Students with unpaid fines and fees will not be able to register, receive a diploma, or obtain a transcript.

Once the amount owed is paid, all blocks will be removed and privileges reinstated.

Payment of Fines and Fees

TWU Students:

• All library fines are being applied to student accounts and need to be paid online in the Pay Online system through your Pioneer Portal or at the Bursar’s Office. Only cash and checks for current term balances will be accepted in person. Library fines are no longer paid at the library. You can see the amount of your fine and your overall remaining balance in the Pay Online system. If you need to dispute a fine, please contact Access Services at 940-898-3701.

Non-TWU Students, Faculty & Staff:

• Payment of fines by cash (exact change only) or check is accepted at the Denton Library, and Dallas Center Circulation Desks. Credit card payments by Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express are only accepted at the Denton Library Circulation Desk. Failure to pay fines and fees may result in your account being turned over to a collection agency.
• A $30 fee will be charged for ALL RETURNED CHECKS including electronic/web checks. TWU processes all eligible returned checks through the Denton County District Attorney’s Hot Check Division. There will be an additional charge assessed by the Denton DA.

Notification of Fines and Fees

Library patrons are responsible for returning all borrowed items on time, whether or not an overdue notice is received.

• Overdue Notices are provided to patrons as a courtesy.
• Before items become overdue, weekly email notices are sent out that remind library users of material due dates so that fines do not accumulate. This is done as a courtesy to our users. A notice is also sent out the day before and on the actual due day. Once overdue, users receive weekly email reminders. When materials reach 30 days overdue, materials are considered lost and additional fees are applied.

All notices are processed daily and are sent via the patron’s TWU email account by default. Courtesy Card patrons will be notified using the email address on file. If there is no email address, notices will be sent by U.S. postal mail to a patron's local address or if Faculty/Staff, by campus mail. Failure to receive a notice does not excuse patrons from fines and fees. Borrowers are responsible for providing a current mailing address, email address, and telephone number in order to receive timely information from the TWU Libraries. Failure to provide this information can result in a revocation of all library privileges.

Fines for Overdue Materials

• Regular Circulating Materials:
  $.35 day per item
  • Media Items: 
    Videocassettes, DVD's, and Media Kits: $1.00/day
    Only one (1) renewal is allowed on media materials and new due dates must be confirmed.
    Please refer to Media Collection for more information on Media items.
  • Laptops: 
    $1.00/min per item
  • Headphones: 
    $3.00/hour
• Interlibrary Loan (ILL) Materials: 
  $1.00/day per item
  Note: Due dates for ILL materials are determined by the lending institution. ILL materials cannot be renewed.
  A $5.00 fee will be assessed for every ILL due date band that is removed from ILL materials.
• Reserve Materials:
  Hourly items: $3.00/hour-per item (accrues at 5 cents/minute)
  One day items: $5.00/day per item
  Weekly items: $5.00/day per item 
  Laptops: $1.00/minute
• Recall Fine: A $2.00/day per recalled item

Replacement Fees

Fine and Fee Schedule for Lost, Damaged and Overdue Materials

*If the actual item cost is significantly greater than the established default fee/cost, library staff may change the assigned cost to reflect the actual cost of the item, as determined from available sources of cost information.

NOTE: Books with accompanying media are considered media items. The replacement cost of items only available in sets will be the replacement cost of the entire set.

• Faculty are not charged fines except for those that are a result of holds, checked out media items, reserves and Interlibrary Loans.
• Faculty also pay fines and fees for lost and damaged materials.

Interlibrary Loan (ILL) Materials:
Cost of the item as determined by the lending library, including penalties paid by the TWU Library for failure to return the item. Minimum fine is $75.00.

Claimed Return Policy
The Circulation Department will search for Claimed Returned items for 30 days. If the item is located by the Library staff, it will be checked in and removed from the patron’s record. If the item is not found, the patron will be charged a minimum of $50 for a book and $100 for media and a $10.00 non-refundable processing fee. If the actual item cost is significantly greater than the established default fee/cost, library staff may change the assigned cost to reflect the actual cost of the item, as determined from available sources of cost information.