What is an Interlibrary Loan?
Answer:
We strive to have materials for everyone, but sometimes you might come across books you'd like to read or movies you'd like to watch that we don't own. That's where Interlibrary Loan (ILL) comes in.
When we don't have an item, we can ask around to other libraries around the county and see if they have it. If one of them does, they can loan us the item, send it in the mail to us, and then we can loan you the item. You'll read, listen to, or watch the item during your allotted loan period and return the item back to RPL when you are finished or the loan period is up. We may be able to renew items to extend your loan period, but that is not guaranteed as every library has different ILL policies. When the item has been returned to RPL, we assess it for condition, then mail it back to the original lending library.
You can submit a request for an ILL yourself using our online ILL request form. You can also start a chat with a librarian, or give us a call at 479-621-1152, and staff would be happy to fill out the form on your behalf. There is no limit to the number of items you can request!
Some things to consider about ILLs
ILLs are subject to fines and fees, just like any other item at the library. In some cases, you may be charged a fee if you return an item late and the lending library charges overdue fees. If we determine that any damage has been done to the item while it was in your possession, we will contact the lending library to determine if and what you will be charged. If you do not return an item that you received via ILL, we will contact the lending library to determine what you will be charged.
Unlike other items at RPL, ILLs come with a $1 fee per item to cover the cost of shipping them back to the lending library. This fee is due at the time of checkout, not at the time of the request being made - this ensures that you aren't charged for an item that we can't find at another library.
You can request just about everything through ILL, but the title must be out for at least 6 months before we can request it. Libraries often will not loan out items that are too new, because they may have many of their own patrons on a waitlist for it. Highly popular items (such as celebrity memoirs or books that have gone viral online) that have been out for more than 6 months can be requested, but be aware that it may be difficult to find a library that will be willing to loan it due to its popularity.
It can take up to 2 weeks for an ILL to arrive, depending on the location of the library we are requesting it from. If you need the item more quickly, you can try looking for it in the catalogs of other local libraries using the links below: