Most holds are filled quickly with available copies, or through hold queues on bestsellers. Some holds need to wait for an ordered copy to arrive, or for a checked-out copy to be returned. Sometimes, however, there are long delays. The only copies may be long overdue, or copies may be lost, damaged or otherwise removed from the system. Orders may never arrive — sometimes because the book is delayed or unavailable, sometimes not. In some cases, holds may become stuck because a copy isn’t properly paged, an in transit item never arrives, or some other problem occurs.
In many cases, with staff intervention, the needed material could quickly be obtained by resolving a problem with the hold, through purchase, or through the Virtual Catalog or ILL Center. In some cases, if more than a week or two has passed, the patron may no longer want the requested title. Some patrons may want not really want the specific title they placed on hold, but may be happy with a different edition or format, a different book on the same subject, any book that contains a particular short story, etc. In a small number of cases, there may be no way to get the patron what they need, in which case it would be better to tell users this, so they can pursue other options.
Following up on holds that are stuck in various ways helps us fill more requests, and fill them more quickly. It also eliminates frustrating situations when old holds get filled months or sometimes years after they were placed, when the patron no longer wants the material, which just is a waste of time and resources for both the library and the user.