User regulations

Right of use

The right to use the library includes the permission to use the collections, the services and the public premises of the library according to these rules.

You can get a personal library card and PIN code at any Kyyti library or mobile library. A new customer must prove his or her identity with an ID card with a photograph and give an address in Finland. A child under 15 years of age needs a permission from his or her guardian, who will be responsible for the child’s loans.  When you sign the library card, you agree to follow the library rules.

The library card must be presented each time you borrow material from the library. The owner of the card is responsible for all the material borrowed with the card. You must report any changes of name or address to the library. If you lose your library card, please inform the library immediately so that your card can be cancelled. You are not responsible for the possible misuse of the card, once the loss has been reported. The age limits prescribed by The Finnish board of film classification are followed in the lending of audiovisual material.

Borrowing
The loan period is 7, 14 or 28 days depending on the material. At Kyyti libraries you can borrow a maximum of a 100 items, which includes 30 CDs, 10 CD-ROMs and 10 DVDs at the same time. Libraries (in the Kyyti area) can also have different restrictions.

You can renew your loans, max. 5 times, also by phone or by the Internet if they are not reserved by other customers. The library is not responsible for any damage caused to the customer’s equipment by recordings borrowed from the library.
 
Reserving
There is a fee for reserving material. It will not be refunded if the customer does not pick up the reserved material.  The reserved material must be picked up in 10 days.

You can request an item through the interlibrary loan service if the item does not exist in the collections of Kyyti libraries (Iitti, Hamina, Kotka, Kouvola, Pyhtää, Miehikkälä and Virolahti). Interlibrary requests follow the general interlibrary rules.

Fees

Library services are generally free of charge. However, there are charges for

  • replacement of lost or damaged library card
  • reservation
  • copies and print-outs
  • interlibrary loans

Reminding and collecting of fines

  • 1st reminder:
    o    reserved material next day after the due date
    o    DVDs and video cassettes 4 days after the due date
    o    other material 14 days after the due date
  • 2nd reminder:
    o    reserved material 8 days after the due date
    o    DVDs and video cassettes 11 days after the due date
    o    other material 28 days after the due date
  • invoice:
    o    reserved material 35 days after the due date
    o    DVDs and video cassettes 39 days after the due date
    o    other material 56 days after the due date
  • The matter is handled by the collecting agency, which causes considerable additional expenses to the customer

You must pay overdue fines from the very first day after the due date. The loan period ends when the library closes in the evening.

Overdue fines are also debited in case of unsuccessful renewals at the Kyyti web library or if you have not received a due date reminder because of a technical failure.

Always handle library material with care. If you lose or damage library material, you have to replace it. There are two ways of replacing lost or damaged material:

  1. buying the same item and bringing it to the library or
  2. paying the price of the item

The library prefers the first alternative, but if the book (or another item) is no longer for sale, you will have to pay the price of it. Video cassettes and DVDs are always replaced by paying the full purchase price to the library.

If the price is not clear, the library will determine the value of the item. The library has the right to collect the replacement charges by legal means. All disputes will be settled in the local court of justice.

Loss of user rights

You may lose your right to use the library services if you

  • do not follow the library rules
  • damage library material or property
  • disturb library services or other customers.

The loss of user rights can last from one day to six months. The library director or a staff member of the library authorized by the director can order the loss of user rights.

Before the ordering of the loss of user rights the parties will be reserved the chance to be heard. In minor situations the prohibition regarding the loss of user rights will be ordered orally, otherwise it will be ordered in writing. The prohibition will be recorded in the customer register of the library and the record will be removed when the user rights are returned after the fixed term.

You may lose your right to borrow material from the library

  • if you fail to return your loans or to pay the charges
  • if your debt to the library is €10 or more

You must pay your debt to the library, no matter how small it is, at the end of each year.

Data protection

The customer data files are confidential. They are used only for controlling the borrowed material. No outsider has access to the customer data. Anyone can check his or her own details in the registration files by proving his or her identity. The library has the right to register the customer’s social security number (Personal Data Act 523/1999, section 13).

Furthermore, the library director of each town or municipality in the Kyyti area is entitled to decide how these rules are applied in uncertain cases.