Fining and Penalizing Patrons

Sierra enables you to add fines and charges to patron records for various reasons. For example, you can fine patrons for not returning an item or for returning it late; you can also charge patrons for services such as interlibrary loan requests or replacement library cards. The types of fines that you can assess include:

For a complete list of available charges, and for a description of the actions taken when the system assesses fines, see Adding Fines to Patron Records.

If your library prefers not to fine patrons, but you still want to penalize patrons who fail to return items on time, you can configure overdue penalty points instead of overdue fines and bills.

You can view the outstanding fines that a patron owes, as well as any notes in the patron's record, from the Fines tab. A patron's outstanding fines can be adjusted, either manually or, in the case of returned billed items, automatically by the system.

A fine remains on a patron's record until you perform an action that removes it, such as collecting money or waiving the fine. You can view fines that have been removed from the patron's record by viewing fines paid. If desired, you can also reinstate a paid fine.

Once the amount of fines in the patron's record reaches the amount specified in for the patron's P TYPE in the Max Owed element of the Patron Blocks table, the system automatically blocks the patron from performing any further circulation transactions. Patrons who do not pay fines and charges in a timely manner can be reported to a collection agency.

See also:: Fines Display