Hi,

I recently borrowed out a book from the UQ library, and forgot to return it on time. Despite not receiving any emails or other forms of reminders from UQ about the book being due, I finally received a letter in the post last week telling me that I needed to return the book or pay for a replacement. In addition to this, even if I return the book, I STILL need to pay a $20 "administration fee".

Obviously I should have remembered to return the book myself - the state-of-the-art technology that is a printed piece of paper tucked inside the front cover of the book that fades in heat should have been enough to tell me that. I also put a reminder in my phone, which was subsequently damaged and replaced - losing the reminder along with it. Perhaps the automated reminder emails that never came should have been the tipping point? Regardless, I accept the responsibility for not returning the book on time, it was merely a mistake on my behalf. My issue is with the $20 fee.

As a full time post-grad student, I spend a significant amount of time working on my studies. Unfortunately, due to Government policy, my Masters degree does not qualify for any form of Centrelink support, which means that I am also required to work to pay for my rent, food, and university supplies myself. A $20 "administration fee" does not fit into my budget. Actually, I assumed that most of the fees for administration would be payed for with the ~$7000 per semester in other fees payed per semester. Perhaps not.

$20 for "administration" for not returning a book on time is ridiculous. All that I received was 1 piece of paper, sent to me in the post, telling me that I owed a $20 fee. No paper reminders. No email reminders. Nothing else. $20 for a bill. $20, which was only $0.05 above the 'waved administration fees' that we are allowed each semester. That last part was particularly delightful to hear about.

In anticipation of the likely responses to this feedback:
- No, I did NOT read the 'terms and conditions/responsibilities for borrowing books'. You show me a student who reads those things, and I'll show you a student not spending enough time on their studies.
- Yes, I realise that the fee could possibly be used as encouragement for students to return books on time so that they can be borrowed by other students (despite the fee being noted as "administration", not "late fee"). It doesn't though. All it encourages me to do is to avoid hiring books as much as possible, because god forbid I should forget to return them on time again, in which case I have to pay another $20 fee. Fining students who are already living on very small budgets that much money for such a small thing as forgetting to return a book on time is just cruel.

Thanks UQ.