[Evergreen-circ] Payments on Overdue Items Apply to Lost Charge

Wed Feb 3 12:48:19 EST 2021

I agree, John.  If fines are reversed, payments should be as well. If you
open a bug let me know and I will add heat to it.

*Dawn Dale, PINES Services Specialist - Circulation*

------------------------------

Georgia Public Library Service

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(404) 291-2800, ddale at georgialibraries.org

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On Wed, Feb 3, 2021 at 12:41 PM John Amundson <jamundson at cwmars.org> wrote:

> Thanks, Dawn.
>
> That's helpful.
>
> The workflow unfortunately does require staff noticing the discrepancies
> and then adjusting, which leaves us in a similar boat to what we are in now.
>
> I'm hoping that there's ultimately an automated solution to this.
>
> John
>
> John Amundson | Library Applications Supervisor | CW MARS
>
> jamundson at cwmars.org | 508-755-3323 x322 <%28508%29%20755-3323>
>
> https://www.cwmars.org
>
> He/Him/His <https://www.mypronouns.org/he-him>
>
>
> On Wed, Feb 3, 2021 at 12:05 PM Dawn Dale <ddale at georgialibraries.org>
> wrote:
>
>> Hi John,,
>>
>> When a patron has overdues of $2.00 and they are forgiven and then
>> reversed leaving a balance of -$2.00 that then gets applied to the cost of
>> the item, $25.00, it leaves a balance of $23.00.  The cost of the item is
>> still $25.00 but the summary shows $23.00.  I would have staff "adjust to
>> zero" the negative balance bill so that the summary shows $25.00.  It
>> will mean staff will need to be diligent in looking at the patron bills
>> before taking payment though. Someone could look at the patrons with
>> negative balances daily and make those adjustments but depending on how
>> many patrons that would involve, that may not be doable.
>>
>> I hope this helps some.
>>
>>
>>
>> *Dawn Dale, PINES Services Specialist - Circulation*
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
>> Georgia Public Library Service
>>
>> 2872 Woodcock Blvd, Suite 250 | Atlanta, GA 30341
>>
>> (404) 291-2800, ddale at georgialibraries.org
>>
>> <https://www.facebook.com/georgialibraries>"
>> <https://www.twitter.com/georgialibs>
>> <https://www.instagram.com/georgialibraries/>
>>
>> Join our email list <http://georgialibraries.org/subscription> for
>> stories of Georgia libraries making an impact in our communities.
>>
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Feb 3, 2021 at 10:56 AM John Amundson <jamundson at cwmars.org>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Hello!
>>>
>>> I am hoping for some feedback and possible advice.
>>>
>>> *TL;DR:*
>>> We are having an issue where payments made while an item is overdue are
>>> deducted from the replacement cost if the item becomes Lost. This is an
>>> issue for some of our libraries because of how funds are handled. We have
>>> tried adjusting settings to help with this, but without the desired result.
>>>
>>> Is your library/network experiencing this, is it an issue, and do you
>>> have a workaround?
>>>
>>> *Full details:*
>>> In our system, checked out items become LOST at 28 days overdue, and we
>>> do not use the Long Overdue setting. When an item becomes LOST, settings
>>> are in place so that the overdue fines are reversed, and only the
>>> replacement charge of the item is due.
>>>
>>> Here is an example of how this works:
>>>
>>>    - An item accrues $2.00 in overdue fines. Then the item becomes
>>>    lost, which reverses the overdue fines and adds a $25.00 replacement cost.
>>>    The patron owes a total of $25.00 for the transaction.
>>>
>>> This works well most of the time. However, with the pandemic and many
>>> libraries forgiving fines, we are running into a situation more often. If
>>> an item's overdue fines are paid for or forgiven while an item is still
>>> checked out and overdue, and the item becomes lost, the "payment" made
>>> against the overdue is applied to the lost charge.
>>>
>>> Here's an example of this:
>>>
>>>    - An item accrues $2.00 in overdue fines. While overdue, the fines
>>>    are forgiven. The item becomes lost, which reverses the overdue fines and
>>>    adds a $25.00 replacement cost. The $2.00 "payment" is not reversed, and
>>>    the patron now only owes $23.00 for the bill.
>>>
>>> This has been problematic for some of our libraries because overdue
>>> fines and lost charges go to separate accounts. For others, it's a problem
>>> simply because they are not receiving the full replacement cost.
>>>
>>> After some discussion, we investigated adjusting our library settings so
>>> that overdue fines are not adjusted when an item becomes lost. So, when an
>>> item becomes lost, its overdue fines are still owed.
>>>
>>> Here's a couple examples of how this works:
>>>
>>>    - An item accrues $2.00 in overdue fees and then becomes lost. The
>>>    item's replacement cost of $25.00 is charged. The patron owes a total of
>>>    $27.00 for the transaction.
>>>    - The item's $2.00 in fines are forgiven while the time is still
>>>    checked out. The item becomes lost. Only the $25.00 replacement cost is
>>>    owed for the transaction.
>>>
>>> The issue with this behavior is that it doesn't solve the underlying
>>> problem, and libraries still need to be diligent to ensure fines/lost
>>> charges are collected appropriately.
>>>
>>> How is this situation handled at your library?
>>>
>>> If there isn't a current workaround, I plan to open up a bug report on
>>> Launchpad, but I wanted to check with the list first to make sure we are
>>> not missing something.
>>>
>>> In an ideal world, a setting could be enabled so that payments made
>>> while an item is overdue are also adjusted in some manner so that the
>>> payment does not affect the lost charge.
>>>
>>> Thanks for reading,
>>> John
>>>
>>> John Amundson | Library Applications Supervisor | CW MARS
>>>
>>> jamundson at cwmars.org | 508-755-3323 x322 <%28508%29%20755-3323>
>>>
>>> https://www.cwmars.org
>>>
>>> He/Him/His <https://www.mypronouns.org/he-him>
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