RE: Lost/replacement billing question

["McClellan Jr., Michael C." <MMcClellan@xxxxxxxxxx>]

I'm not aware of a method to automatically update the status of checked out
material to Lost in a batch mode.  So here is our alternative which we do on
an annual basis.  

Create a file of overdue material using checkout date.
Use the batch check in function found in Additional Circulation functions,
Batch Check in
This only works from review files.
Batch check in the material
Immediately delete the item record.

Batch check in creates a financial charge for the material based on our loan
rules.  It waives fines but I don't know about billing fees since we don't
use them.  There is bibliographic information on the patron record to
explain the charge since the item has been deleted.  We also create a
separate list of patrons who have items falling in the check out date range
and insert a message on the account stating the charge is for long overdue
material that has been withdrawn.  This is done to help circulation staff
understand the charge for overdue material that no longer appears as a
currently checked out item.  The "How can the patron be billed for something
that is no longer checked out to them?  

The items have to be withdrawn immediately since they now appear as
available.  We only do this for material overdue by three years.

Michael McClellan
Circulation Department Supervisor
Minneapolis Public Library
300 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN  55401
612-630-6042


-----Original Message-----
From: Fran Juergensmeyer [mailto:fjuergen@xxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2002 4:45 PM
To: innopac@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Lost/replacement billing question


This seems like it should be a fairly straight-forward problem, but I was
not able to find anything in the manual.  We started using III products in
the past year, and we are currently using Millennium, Release 2001.  
There are several items that have been overdue long enough that they are
now billed.  The patron has moved, and it is extremely unlikely that the
items will ever be returned or the bill paid.  We would like to change the
billing to lost so that we can withdraw the items.  Is there a way to do
this in one step -- i.e., change the bill from replacement to lost?  When
we set the items to lost in the patron record, it generates another charge
and we have to waive the replacement bill.

Thanks in advance!
  Fran Juergensmeyer
  Waukegan (IL) Public Library
  fjuergen@xxxxxxxxxx

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