Public Service Meeting 5/5/2016

Listed are some highlights from Thursday's Public Service Meeting.

Regarding Lost or Damaged materials:

• Accept payment for the item, charging the replacement cost found in the CLAMS record.  If the item belongs to another library & the cost of the item seems unusually high or out-of-the-ordinary, please call the owning library and see if they are willing to adjust the price.  Checks should be made payable to the owning library. (NOTE - Some libraries require checks be made out to the Town, i.e. Brooks is "Town of Harwich", Dennis Public is "Town of Dennis").  For correct library names & addresses, go to "Library Information" on the CLAMS staff pages or click "All CLAMS Libraries at the top of OPAC.

• Mark the item as lost/damaged in the system, and clear the charge from the patron's record. If damaged, add a message to the item 'at checkout/in'. The message can only be removed by the owning library

• Print a receipt of the transaction for the patron and make a copy for the owning library. Make sure the owning library has the name, barcode, and contact information for the patron, as well as the name and barcode of the item in case they need to follow up with the patron or want to replace the item.

• Mail the payment to the owning library. Do not put any checks or cash in delivery. Mail it to the attention of the Circulation Department.

• Replacement items are generally not accepted for lost or damaged materials. This should be made known to the patron immediately at the time the loss or damage is brought to a staff member's attention. If a patron has already purchased a replacement item, you must contact the owning library to see if they will accept it in lieu of monetary reparation, but this is totally at their discretion.

Regarding Pop-up Messages on Patron Accounts:

• All pop-up messages should be dated and initialed as per stated policy. For example: dp/cl 5/6/16. 
• When adding messages please BE SPECIFIC. Add the message to the item (or patron account) at checkout.
• Messages can be removed if they are not initialed and dated, but can only be removed by the owning library.

Regarding Vendor Support Contacts: 

• Here is a list of Vendor Support contacts - https://sites.google.com/a/clamsnet.org/staff/systems/support-contact-list-information?pli=1. For Tech Support in NoveList, Commonwealth Catalog, Patron Internet issues, and Overdrive, please contact the vendor directly. For issues with Sierra, Opac, Encore, Staff email & Staff internet please contact CLAMS support. 

REMINDERS:

• About Missing Items Reports - A handout is provided in your mailbox.
• DO NOT place 'Item-Level Holds' on items unless it is for a book club or has volume information.

Thanks much!

Chrissie