Circulation Policy

Patrons who borrow materials from the Library must have a valid library card issued by Platteville Public Library or a member of the Southwest Wisconsin Library System.

Standard Circulation Limits

Loan periods and limits on the number of library materials that may be borrowed will be determined by the Library Board. Designated Library staff, at their discretion, may approve requests for the overnight loan of in-house items.

Art prints

Limit: 2
Checkout period: 120 days
Renewal period: 120 days
Renewal limit: 1

Book Club Kits

Limit: 10
Checkout period: 35 days
Renewal period: 35 days
Renewal limit: 1

DVDs, Kits, Playaways

Limit: 10
Checkout period: 28 days
Renewal period: 28 days
Renewal limit: 1

Books, Magazines, Books on CD, Music CDs, SWLS Resource items

Limit: 100
Checkout period: 28 days
Renewal period: 28 days
Renewal limit: 1

Newspapers, Reference, Microfilm

Limit: 0
Checkout period: 0 days
Renewal period: 0 days
Renewal limit: 0

Renewal

Circulating library materials may be renewed according to the circulation limits unless the item has been reserved for another patron.

Returns

Materials can be returned to the exterior Library book drop at any time or to the interior book drop during business hours. Materials which will not fit in the book drop must be returned inside the Library. Items returned in the book drop before the library opens for the day are considered returned the previous open day.

Library materials can be returned at any Southwest Wisconsin Library System member library for return via the System’s interlibrary delivery van.

Overdue Materials

Materials are overdue if they have not been returned to the Library book drop or circulation desk by the opening of business on the day following their due date.

Patrons will be sent three overdue notices, followed by a fourth and final notice.

Fines

Platteville Public Library does not charge fines but other libraries in the Southwest Wisconsin Library System might. Items checked out at other locations are subject to the lending library’s policies. At the Platteville Public Library, fines must be under $10 to checkout.

Lost & Damaged Materials

Materials which have not been returned to the Library 30 or more days beyond the due date will be considered lost. Patrons will be charged the replacement cost for lost item(s). Patron accounts with lost item(s) will be blocked from checking out additional items until all lost items are returned, paid for, or replaced with a new or like new copy. Payments for lost or damaged materials are not refundable.

Patrons who return an item that is damaged beyond use will be charged the item’s replacement cost. The patron may keep the item upon payment.

Materials that are not returned in their entirety are considered damaged. Patrons will be charged the cost of partial or complete replacement, depending upon the availability of components.

Patron borrowing privileges may be suspended until damaged materials are returned completely or paid for.

In special circumstances, fees may be adjusted or waived at the discretion of the Library Director or designated staff member in charge.

Intra-Library Loan Requests

If an item is owned within the Southwest Wisconsin Library System a request (intra-library loan) may be placed. Patrons may have up to 10 requests at a time.

Patrons will be notified as soon as the requested item is available at the Platteville Public Library circulation desk. Requested items will be held at the library for 7 days, after which time they may be passed on to the next waiting patron or returned to their home library.

Intra-library loan privileges are not available to out-of-state residents holding a Platteville Public Library access-only card.

Inter-Library Loan Requests

If an item is not owned within the Southwest Wisconsin Library System, an inter-library loan request (ILL) may be placed through outside library systems. Out-of-system interlibrary loan requests are limited to 10 per patron at any given time.

Availability of items, length of loan, and renewal privileges are determined by the lending library. Materials received as out-of-system interlibrary loans generally cannot be renewed. Due to shipping and processing costs and to ensure fair usage of materials, the same item may be requested no more than once every four months by a patron.

Patrons will be notified when the material arrives. Items not picked up by their due dates will be returned to the lending library. Materials received via out-of-system interlibrary loan must be returned to Platteville Public Library.

Libraries generally do not fill interlibrary loan requests for non-circulating items, new items, or items in high demand.

Patrons are responsible for loss or damage to materials received on interlibrary loan and will be responsible for payment of replacement costs and any associated fines or fees assessed by the lending library.

Patrons with suspended checkout privileges will also have interlibrary loan privileges suspended. Patrons who repeatedly fail to pick up materials requested on interlibrary loan or who repeatedly return interlibrary loan materials late may be denied this service at the discretion of the Library Director.

Interlibrary loan privileges are not available to out of state residents.

Updated by the Platteville Public Library Board of Trustees, July 3, 2018.
Updated by the Platteville Public Library Board of Trustees, December 2, 2020