Videorecordings

Videorecordings, both DVDs and videocassettes, are usually 4-hour items, 3-day items or 7-day items.  Each item’s loan period is clearly marked on its case.

Sound Recordings

Most sound recordings have a 7-day loan period.

4-Hour Items

These titles are available for viewing in the Sound and Moving Image Library (SMIL) during the day unless they have been reserved for lectures or other York events. Faculty, students and staff count on these materials being available for preview, research, review, course assigned viewing and teaching. About ten thousand classroom reservations are made each year so many of these titles will have upcoming scheduled screenings.

For the convenience of our patrons these titles may be borrowed for home viewing when it is four hours or less until SMIL’s closing. They are due back one hour after the Sound and Moving Image Library opens the following day. This overnight loan policy supports the level of availability our patrons expect and allows SMIL to effectively manage the media reservation system.

Late returns jeopardize scheduled lectures by faculty, presentations by students and result in wasted time for patrons who do not find necessary materials available in the Sound and Moving Image Library. The overdue fine rate of three dollars per hour reflects the serious challenge to our patrons that late returns represent.

3-Day and 7-Day Items

We are able to offer these titles for three and seven day loan periods but it is important to understand that they are also part of the Sound and Moving Image Library’s working collection. The demands on these collections are similar to those described above for the 4-hour items. These collections include many videorecordings and most CDs. The fines are five dollars per day, reflecting the access expectations of our patrons.

If you have received a fine from SMIL but feel there are mitigating circumstances, you may fill out a SMIL petition.

Here are some suggestions

• Fill out the petition in full
• Explain clearly why the item was returned late
• If you were uncertain of any of the library’s or SMIL’s policies when the items were charged out, indicate whether you are now familiar with the relevant policies.

Petitioning for the following reasons is not often successful

• Card was used by a friend
• Someone else was asked to return the borrowed material
• Item was returned to the wrong library
• Had to work
• Had plans that made it impossible to return on time
• Didn’t know the library was open/closed
• Didn’t know when the material was due
• Didn’t know that the fines were so high
• Item wasn’t needed by anyone else
• The fine is more than the item is worth
• Informing the library that you will not pay the fine

Click here  for the Sound and Moving Image Library petition form

You should receive an e-mail response fourteen days after the petition has been received by the Sound and Moving Image Library. If you have not, you may e-mail msnitman@yorku.ca to inquire about your petition’s status.