Montreal says it's abolishing library late fees, but there are questions about the math

Montreal -

Montreal officially abolished late fees at its libraries on Wednesday -- but that doesn't mean you're off the hook if you keep a book at home. In fact, you could be worse off financially.

The move has been planned for several months after late fees were suspended during the pandemic, and the city decided to make it permanent, saying it wanted to make libraries more accessible for low-income readers.

"This strong gesture... eliminates an economic barrier for the Montreal population, especially vulnerable populations, to access to library resources and services," said a news release from the city.

But the way the new system has been designed has some questioning if it will actually help or hurt borrowers.

It's true that late fees will no longer apply to any books. The rate used to be 25 cents per day, per document, for adults, and 10 cents for children and seniors.

But the catch is that this abolishment only applies until a document is 32 days late. At that point, the library member will not only have his or her card suspended -- that happens after five days -- but will be charged the full cost of replacing the book, DVD or whatever other document they borrowed, plus a $5 administrative charge.

Overall, this system appears to add up to steeper fees than the pre-pandemic ones, if users are late by a month.

It used to be that late fees for any given book were capped at $3 for adults, and $2 for children and seniors. 

Now, if someone returns a document after 32 days, the document replacement cost will be returned, but the $5 administrative fee is non-refundable.

That system was already in place and the city decided to continue it unchanged.

That could add up, especially for kids and seniors. If a child returns, for example, five books about a month late, now they appear to be on the hook for $25, whereas before they'd only be charged $15, or five times the former capped $2 charge.

Some Montrealers pointed out Wednesday that it doesn't necessarily sound kinder overall.

hey, Montreal librairies are eliminating their late fees! Part of a movement that wants to avoid punishing vulnerable persons... instead your card will be put on hold, and after 32 days, you have to pay for the value of the document you borrowed, plus a $5 fee.

— Sarah Deshaies 🌈 (@sarahdeshaies) October 6, 2021

Typical politician BS. Late fees are "waived" but if your item is 5 days late your account is frozen, can't take anything else out.

After a month you're sent a bill for the full cost of the item. As a policy, that's fine. But don't go bragging about how all late fees are waived https://t.co/Yhp52e2wps

— Rod Francis (@InRodWeTrustMTL) October 6, 2021

There were some confusing points in the city's very brief announcement.

It wasn't clear whether the $5 administrative fee will always be charged, even if the replacement fee is ultimately waived because a document is returned.

The city explained to CTV later on Wednesday that the entire invoice, including the $5 fee, will be cancelled if the book is returned.

Abolishing late fees is also, according to the release, a way of keeping people feeling welcome at the library, which, of course, provides all sorts of services, including internet access and kids' play areas, as well as borrowing.

"Some people and families avoid going to libraries because their files are blocked due to late fees," the city wrote.

"The abolition of these fees aims to bring these subscribers back to the library."

Dès aujourd’hui, les frais de retard sont abolis dans toutes les bibliothèques de Montréal! C’est une mesure importante pour nous, qui permet de réduire les inégalités, tout en facilitant l’accès à la culture, aux livres et aux ordinateurs. #polmtl https://t.co/5d4ORwCVaB

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) October 6, 2021

Denis Chouinard, president of the Association des Bibliotheques Publiques du Quebec, told CTV News the new rule aims to take pressure off those who are only a few days late with their returns.

But "not having late fees doesn't mean we have no rules," he pointed out. "There's still a due date."  

But the block placed on someone's library card for being late with a book seems to kick in sooner now than before.

People's cards used to be blocked once they had reached the per-book cap on late fees, or in other words, $3 for adults, $2 for kids and seniors.

If one book is late, that wouldn't result in a blocked card for 12 days, for adults, or 20 days for kids and seniors. Now, any late item results in an automatic blocked card after just five days.

A city spokesperson said that under the old system, people could have their cards blocked sooner than five days, if they had enough documents that were late all at once.

"Before the pandemic, the user...could see his file blocked as soon as he reached a $3 fine (for adults and $2 for children), even if his documents were less than five days late," wrote Camille Begin.

"For example, an adult who borrowed 15 documents, at 25 cents per document per day, had his file blocked from the second day late."

If the benefit of the change is mostly in giving amnesty to past late fees, Montreal has done that before as a limited-time offer, with success -- a 2017 late-fee amnesty brought thousands of documents back into libraries and resulted in the renewal of many cards.

Montreal's announcement came within a day of a similar announcement by New York Public Libraries, but the updated New York program is much more forgiving.

In that city, borrowing fees will only be suspended once members' fees reach a total of $100 or more. There's also no administrative fee, and if people later find or return a book that they've already been charged to replace, those costs will simply be reversed.

New York Public Libraries also said that that card blocks only apply to borrowing physical materials, and that users with blocked cards will still be able to borrow e-books and to use library computers.