FAQs: Renewing a Single Item

If a user with a blocked status tries to renew an item, you can determine the reason for the status and take actions to change the user’s status (if desired), and then continue the renewal process.

To renew an item if the user is BLOCKED

Click the Renew Item wizard.

In the Item ID box, scan the item ID.

If the user is blocked, an alert message displays with brief information explaining the user’s status.

Do one of the following:

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To display additional user information, click Investigate.

When you finish viewing the user information, click OK to return to the alert message.

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If the user is blocked because of bills and he or she wants to make a payment before renewing the item, click Pay Bills.

Enter the payment amount, select a payment type, and click Pay Bills.

Click Renew to go to the Renew Item window.

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To ignore the blocked user status, click Enter Override & Renew Items.

In the User Block Override box, type the code, and then click OK to renew the item.

How do I renew items for a user whose library privileges have expired?

You can renew a user’s expired library privileges automatically during the renewal process.

To renew a user’s library privileges

Click the Renew Item wizard.

If a user’s library privileges have expired, the Extend Privilege dialog box appears.

Do one of the following.

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Click Extend Privilege to automatically renew the user’s privilege based on the user’s profile.

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Under Extend User’s Library Privilege, click Special to set the privilege date.

Continue with the renewal process.

Important Considerations When Renewing Privileges

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You can renew a user’s expired library privileges during item renewal only if the Extend User’s Library Privilege check box is selected in the Renew Item wizard properties.

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If SirsiDynix Symphony is configured to charge a fee when the user’s privilege is extended, a bill is only created if the privilege is extended based on policy settings. If a special privilege date is set, a bill will not be assessed.

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If the user has a credit account and policies are configured to automatically pay privilege fees with money from the credit account, fees created when renewing a user’s privilege may be paid automatically with funds from the user’s credit account. For more information, see FAQs: Credit User Accounts.

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You can also use the Renew Privilege wizard to renew a user's library privileges.

How do I renew a specific charge for a user if the item has holds?

You can renew an item with holds for the user by entering an override code to continue the renewal process.

To renew an item that has holds

Click the Renew Item wizard.

In the Item ID box, scan the item barcode.

If the item has holds, the following message displays.

Item has holds

In the Hold Block Override box, type the override code, and click OK.

How do I specify a different due date when I renew an item?

There are instances when a renewal period may need to be extended.

To specify a different due date when renewing an item

Click the Renew Item wizard.

Use the Special Due Date helper and an override to extend the item’s renewal period.

Specify whether this special due date will be used from now on or only for the current renewal, and then click OK.

Scan the item’s barcode and continue the renewal process.

How do I look up an item’s catalog information during the renewal process?

You can display an item’s catalog information during the renewal process by using the Item Search Helper.

How do I renew an item and record the transaction as a “seen” renewal?

A seen renewal means the item is physically present for library staff to inspect it at the time of renewal. (An unseen renewal means the item is renewed by telephone, by the user in the e-Library, or by the user at a Selfcheck workstation.)

To renew the item and record the renewal as a “seen” renewal, select the Mark Item as Seen check box before scanning or typing the item ID.

The Item Seen check box in the Renew Item wizard properties can be selected so the Mark Item as Seen is selected by default. The Unseen Renew Limit attribute in the Circulation Rule policy should be configured if the number of “unseen” renewals is to be limited.

If the renewal is recorded as a seen renewal, the unseen renewal counter is reset to 0. The unseen renewal counter records the number of consecutive unseen renewals, and determines when the number of consecutive unseen renewals permitted by the Unseen Renew Limit attribute in the Circulation Rule policy is reached. Therefore, when a renewal is recorded as a seen renewal, the unseen renewal counter is reset to 0.

How do I renew a reserved item?

Setting the Renew Reserve Desk Items property for the Renew Item wizard determines how items on reserve are handled.

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If the Renew Reserve Desk Items property is set to Yes, the reserved item is renewed as usual.

The Renew Item wizard searches the item’s Reserve Desk. If the Reserve Desk is closed or about to close, the wizard asks the staff member to enter an alternate due date (if one has not been selected already).

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If the Renew Reserve Desk Items property is set to No, the Item on reserve, may not be renewed message displays and the renewal process stops.

How do I renew an accountable item?

You can renew an accountable item for the user by typing an override code to continue the renewal process.

How do I renew a circulation set?

You can renew circulation sets using the Renew Item wizard and the renewal item function of the Checkout wizard. If you scan a set ID, the wizard displays the list of items in the set. You can renew all items or selected items from the list. If a parental-type circulation set is renewed, then all items in the set are renewed using the circulation rule of the parent item. If a non-parental circulation set is renewed then all items in the set are renewed using the items’ individual circulation rules.

How do I display information about the item before I choose to renew it?

The Review Items Before Renewing wizard property allows you to see information about the item before you renew it.

If the Review Items Before Renewing property is selected, the Renew This Item? window displays information about the item you want to renew, such as author, title, item type, number of holds on the item, and the user ID of the user to whom the item is checked out.

Do one of the following:

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Click Renew This Item to continue the renewal process.

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Click Do Not Renew to return to the wizard.

Can item renewal fees be paid automatically?

If your library charges a fee for renewing items, users can pay the renewal fees automatically if the following conditions are met:

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The user renewing the items has a credit account with a balance that is sufficient to pay the renewal fee.

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Your library’s policies are configured to automatically pay item renewal fees with money from a patron credit account.

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The automatic payment defaults are configured in the Renew Item wizard properties.

For more information, see FAQs: Credit User Accounts.

What do I do if I see the “Warning!! This item was reported as lost or assumed to be lost” message?

The following message appears if the user tries to renew an item that he or she had checked out and was marked as Lost by the Mark Item Lost wizard or the Assumed Lost report.

Warning!! This item was reported as lost or assumed to be lost.

If this message displays, do one of the following:

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To renew the item for the user, type the override code in the Lost Item Override box, and click Override & Renew Item.

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To cancel the renewal, click Do Not Renew Item.

Can I configure a warning for when a user has only one renewal left for an item?

Yes. In the Renew Item, Renew User, and Checkout wizard Behavior properties, there is the Display an Alert for the Next to Last Renewal property. When this property is selected, an alert will display at renewal when the second to the last renewal is reached. This alert displays for “seen” and “unseen” renewals. A count of remaining renewals displays in the checkout glossary in the Checkout wizard and in the e-Library’s My Account page. If the item has unlimited renewals, the remaining renewals will display as UNLIMITED.