Set your loan policy
Loan period, max renewals, and blocked-patron rules.
Your loan policy is the default rules for how books circulate at your library. Set these once and they apply to all checkouts.
Where to set
Settings → Loan Policies
Loan period
Default: 21 days
How long a patron has before a book is due. Common values:
- 14 days — Standard fast-turnaround library
- 21 days — Most church libraries
- 28 days — Larger format or reference books
- 42 days — Children's books (parents need extra time)
Maximum renewals
Default: 2
How many times a patron can renew before the book must be returned. Each renewal extends by the full loan period.
Renewal window
Default: 3 days
How early before the due date a patron can renew. Renewing 3 days before due gives the patron 21 + 3 = 24 days of total grace.
Waitlist behavior
When another patron has a hold on the book:
- "Block renewal" (default): Patron cannot renew if there's a waitlist
- "Allow renewal" (less common): Patron can still renew; waitlist patron has to wait
Patron scoring
A→F grade based on engagement and on-time returns. F-grade patrons are automatically blocked from new holds until they speak with a librarian.
Set the threshold in Settings → Patron Scoring:
- Number of late returns before downgrade
- Days late before counting as "very late"
- Whether to auto-block F-grade patrons
Changes take effect immediately
When you change loan policies, new loans use the new policy. Existing loans keep their original terms.