Borrowing and Returning

You can place a hold on an item in the catalog using your online account. Once you receive an email that your hold is available, it will be kept for 1 week until it is put back on our shelf.

If you don’t want a hold anymore, you can cancel it through My Account. After logging in, select “My holds” and then select “Delete” next to the item.

If you’re going away or will be unable to pick up a hold for an extended period, you can pause and resume holds from the My holds page in your online account.

Card holders may borrow up to 100 items. Total checkouts may not include more than 20 each of movies, board games, and kits, and not more than 6 video games.

At the time of checkout, borrowers receive receipts listing items checked out with due dates. Borrowers can monitor checkouts and due dates using My Account.

Those that provide an e-mail address at the time of registration are sent courtesy reminders three days before items are due and three overdue notices. The first notice is sent at 7 days, the second at 14 days, and the last at 21 days. The library does not send paper notices.

Overdue fines are charged when an item is not returned on time, regardless of whether the borrower received a courtesy reminder email. You can also call your library to confirm or update your email address over the phone.

Most library items are eligible for at least one renewal, and many can be renewed twice. However, an item cannot be renewed if another library user has placed a hold on it, or you’ve reached the renewal limit for that item.

Most library items can be returned to any public library in Bucks County, regardless of where they were borrowed. Museum passes must be returned to the library from which they were borrowed.

Please do not clean or disinfect library materials, as it will damage the items.

If you receive an overdue email notice for an item you recently returned, please check My Account after 24 hours, as it may take our system a few hours to process a return. If the item still appears in My Account after 24 hours, call the library where you returned the item.

Fines and fees can be paid at the library or online through My Account.

Daily fines:

• Books and magazines: 25 cents per day
• Videos and games: $1 per day

The maximum fine for overdue books, videos, and games is $5, no matter how many days overdue. The maximum fine for overdue magazines is $2.

For lost or damaged material, Bucks County Free Library charges the list price at the time the library purchased the item. This dollar amount is part of the record in the library catalog. If an item is overdue when it is reported lost or determined to be damaged, overdue fines are waived once the item is paid for.

Borrowers with accrued fines and fees of $20 or higher are blocked from checkout and computer use. The Bucks County Free Library and selected member libraries use material recovery agencies to manage delinquent accounts. Any account with fines or fees of $25 or higher are forwarded to a material recovery agency after 45 days of failure to pay fines or return materials. A non-negotiable $12 fee is charged to the borrower.

Please visit the Suggest a Purchase page to learn more about suggesting items for the library’s collection or obtaining an item through Interlibrary Loan.

Yes, most items borrowed from any public library in Bucks County can be returned to any other library. Museum passes must be returned to the library from which they are borrowed.

1. Log in to My Account.
2. Click “My holds.”
3. Check the box next to the item you want to pause.
4. Click the “Pause” button.
5. Click “Show pause hold dates” and select the date range you’d like the item to be paused.
6. Click “Save.”

You may receive an automatic reminder email or see items still listed on your account before our system processes your return. Please check your account at least 24 hours after returning the item. If it still appears in your list of checkouts, contact the library where you returned the item, and staff will be happy to look for the item.

Please contact the library where you borrowed the item to let them know the item is lost. Bucks County Free Library charges the list price at the time the library purchased the item. If an item is overdue when it’s reported lost or damaged, the overdue fines are waived once the item is paid for. Lost item fees can be paid online through My Account or in person at any of our locations.