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Following is a question by the Hon James To Kun-sun and a written reply by the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Tsang Tak-sing, in the Legislative Council today (February 11):
Question:
It has been reported earlier that despite having returned the loaned materials to the public libraries (libraries/library) on time, a patron was still advised by the relevant library that she had failed to return the materials and she was even requested by library staff to provide a proof by completing a "Claimed Return Form" (CRF). Yet, the materials were later recovered in the libraries. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department subsequently explained that the library staff concerned had made an error in the procedure of handling the return of materials and had not successfully scanned the bar codes of the materials. As a result, the return procedure was not completed and the borrowing record in the library computer system was not updated. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of library materials returned belatedly by patrons in each of the past three years, and its percentage in the total number of loaned materials;
(2) of the number of CRFs received by libraries from patrons in each of the past three years and, among them, the respective numbers of cases the materials involved in which were recovered later in libraries, returned by patrons and yet to be recovered (set out in a table);
(3) of the current procedure for handling cases of late return of materials; whether libraries will check if the materials concerned are inside their premises or have been mistakenly transferred to another library prior to approaching the patrons concerned; if they will check, of the relevant procedure; if not, the reasons for that;
(4) of the procedure adopted by libraries for handling CRFs; the number of days usually taken to complete the procedure (including checking if the materials concerned are inside their premises and notifying patrons on the outcome of the checking); the respective numbers of CRFs accepted and not accepted by libraries in each of the past three years, and the penalty imposed on those patrons whose CRF were not accepted by libraries;
(5) whether the authorities will review the manpower and computerised procedure for handling the return of materials by libraries, with a view to minimising the chances of making errors (including ensuring the successful scanning of bar codes of returned materials and updating borrowing records in the computer system);
(6) whether the authorities will review the current checking procedure regarding the transfer of materials among libraries (e.g. ensuring the completion of the return procedure and updating borrowing records prior to transferring the materials reserved by readers to another library); and
(7) of the procedure for conducting the annual stock taking of materials by libraries and the results of such exercises conducted in each of the past three years (set out the relevant figures in a table)?
Reply:
President,
The reply to various parts of the question is as follows:
(1) The number of overdue library materials and its percentage in the total number of loan items in the past three years are shown in Table 1.
(2) In the past three years, the number of Declaration of Claimed Return of Library Material (Declaration) received by public libraries from patrons, and the respective numbers of claimed return items recovered later in libraries, returned by patrons and not found are set out by year in Table 2.
(3) If a loan item is not returned or renewed by the due date, the library computer system will issue an "overdue alert" to the patron on the day following the due date via e-mail or mobile application. An "overdue notice" will be sent to the patron by e-mail or post on the 15th day after the due date. On the 45th day after the due date, a "final overdue notice" will be issued to the patron by post. Library staff will also call the patron on the 14th day after the issuance of the "final overdue notice" to follow up the case. As there are over 3 million overdue loan items per year, the Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL) cannot conduct manual checks on these loan items at each public library before the issuance of the above automatically generated messages. However, if a patron finds incorrect record of loan items in his library account after receiving the overdue notice, he may contact library staff for immediate follow-up action.
(4) After receiving a Declaration, library staff will issue immediately an acknowledgement to the patron, which states that they will search the item within the library and reminds the patron to return the item to any public library once it is found. While the case is being processed, the borrowing limit of the patron will not be affected. According to the code of practice, the library staff will conduct the first search within two working days, then two searches per week in the first two weeks, one search each in the third and fourth week, followed by a search per month. If the item is recovered in the first two months, the patron will be notified when borrowing library materials at the library. The patron may also call the library or search the library catalogue/library website for an update of the case. If nothing is recovered by the library staff in the first two months, the library will notify the patron in writing of the progress and that it will continue to trace the item in the coming ten months. The patron will be reminded again to return the item to any public library once it is found. The library staff will review the case and check the computer record to ascertain the updated position of the item each time before they conduct a regular search. If eventually the claimed return item cannot be recovered, it will be reported as a special item in the patron's library card record and the library will review the case and follow-up as appropriate. If the patron's Declaration is determined as not to be accepted after investigation, the library will notify the patron in writing of the outcome and request him to pay the replacement cost and overdue fines for the unaccepted library item on the Declaration at any public library without delay.
The HKPL always counts on patrons to return library materials. Declarations submitted by patrons in 2012 and 2013 were all accepted, and only three Declarations were not accepted in 2014.
(5) Library staff are required to handle the return of library materials in accordance with the relevant working guidelines. To ensure service quality, the HKPL will strengthen staff training and re-circulate the working guidelines among its staff regularly. Patrons can check their latest loan records through the library catalogue terminals in the library or on the Internet and inform the library staff for their immediate follow-up action in case of any problems. Also, the HKPL is examining the application of the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology with a view to continuously enhancing the service quality of the libraries.
(6) The HKPL has a set of strict procedures for the transfer of materials among libraries. After loan items have been returned according to the procedures, the computer system will automatically update the loan record. The staff will then realise if the items have been reserved or belong to other libraries and take appropriate follow-up actions.
(7) A stocktaking exercise is conducted annually in all public libraries. Generally, the computer system will generate a stocktaking checklist for individual libraries by drawing a certain number of library materials from their library collection catalogues. All libraries are required to complete the exercise within one month. The number of library materials could not be located after the annual stocktaking exercise in the past three years is shown in Table 3.
Ends/Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Issued at HKT 14:49
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