Conditions  of  Membership

Library membership is free to all residents and rate-payers of New Plymouth and the surrounding Taranaki area.

There are two forms of Puke Ariki Membership:

Non-lending Membership

A"Non-Lending" membership card entitles Taranaki regional residents and rate payers to use all free Puke Ariki and District Libraries services, including free entry into temporary exhibitions, but excludes the right to borrow items from the Puke Ariki library collection. To become a "Non-lending" member you need to bring in two forms of identification as per below.

Lending Membership

Library membership is free to all residents and property owners of Taranaki.  Membership is available to visitors from outside of Taranaki at a fee of $20.00 per every 3 months.

Using your card:

1. You must present your card every time you wish to check out items.
2. No more than 40 items may be issued on your card at any time.
3. Visitors' cards are limited to five items at a time.
4. You are responsible for any items issued on your (or your child's) card.
5. You are responsible for returning borrowed items on time.
6. Items returned or renewed after the due date will incur fines.
7. Your membership will expire if you do not use your card for two consecutive years.

Change of address and lost cards:

Please report as soon as possible:

• Change of postal, residential or email address
• Cancellation of membership
• Loss, theft, or damage of borrowed items
• Loss or theft of your library card - If your card is lost or stolen, you are still responsible for any activity on your card until the Library is notified to cancel it

Suspension of borrowing rights will occur:

1. When fines or charges have been outstanding for more than three months.
2. When unpaid fines and/or charges reach $5.

Email and postal notices:

1. You have the choice of being notified about reserved or overdue items either by email or by post.
2. The first reminder notice is sent by email or by by post when an item is 7- 10 days overdue.
3. The library will send two email/postal notices before charging the replacement cost of items not returned.
4. The library will resume sending notices by post if an email address is unreliable.
5. The library accepts no responsibility for notices sent but not received or read.

Lost items:

If an item issued to you (or your child) is not returned to the library, you will be charged the replacement cost.

If lost item and/or overdue charges are not paid, your details will be sent to our debt collection agency.