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  1. Library
  2. Library services
  3. Borrow, renew, return
  4. Postal loans

Postal loans

We can post standard loan items to you if you live in the UK or Ireland.

If you are unable to get onto campus all students are currently able to use this service free of charge.

 (A £10 charge for students who aren’t registered as distance learners is usually applied)

Only items owned by Leeds University Library can be borrowed by postal loan. We are not permitted to mail out items obtained from other libraries through our Document Supply service.

Please be aware that some materials may be too fragile or delicate to post.

Applying for a postal loan

To apply for a postal loan, contact us with the following information:

  • personal details: name, student number or library barcode number, phone number
  • course title (eg MSc Clinical Embryology)
  • whether you are on placement (healthcare students)
  • the full details of the requested item(s), eg title, year or edition, and author's full name
  • postal address
  • the date after which you will no longer require the item (in case we have any difficulty locating it, or if we have to recall it from another customer)

We will process your request within three working days of receipt. Items are dispatched on a 48-hour delivery service and will require a signature on delivery.

Please let us know if your item hasn’t arrived within seven days of dispatch. If items are lost in the post, there is a seven-day time limit by which we need to submit an insurance claim.

Returning items

You can also return items by post. We strongly recommend that you use a recorded delivery service with insurance since you will be liable for any loss or damage in the post.

You can also use our free postal returns service.

Items will automatically renew until they are returned, unless they have been requested by another customer.

If another customer has requested the item you will need to return it, even during vacations. You will be blocked from borrowing other items if it becomes overdue. It is your responsibility to make sure that the item reaches the Library in time for its due date.

You are responsible for ensuring that you return the item in the same condition that you received it.

If you are not using the free postal returns service, then please send all postal loans to the library they belong to. Simply place the name of the library as the first line of the address and follow it with:

Leeds University Library
University of Leeds
Leeds
LS2 9JT