Loans Out Conditions

Requests

The National Army Museum welcomes informal enquiries to discuss the possibility of borrowing objects from its collection. However, for approval, formal loan requests must be made in writing to the Museum’s Director:

Justin Maciejewski
National Army Museum
Royal Hospital Road
London SW3 4HT

Loan requests are considered by the Director and decisions confirmed to the Registrar who manages the administration of loans.

Notice

The minimum notice period for UK and international borrowers is six months. While the Museum will consider requests with shorter notice there is no guarantee that we will be able to meet the required date of the Borrower. This is to allow the Museum sufficient time to prepare the objects for loan and conduct sufficient security and environmental checks whilst managing other Museum commitments.

Costs

UK non-commercial borrowers will not be charged a loan administration fee. However, the Museum does maintain a cost recovery system for conservation time spent preparing objects for loan. This will include preliminary checks, work to prepare objects (eg cleaning, framing), condition reports and packing. This is charged at £30 per hour with a minimum of 3 hours per object.

Regimental and Corps Museums will not be charged for conservation time.

International and commercial borrowers will be charged an administration fee and courier fee (where applicable) in addition to the conservation time outlined above.

All loan costs will be estimated at the point of approval and the Registrar will confirm costs for approval with the Borrower prior to any work commencing.

In addition to the above, the Borrower shall cover all costs relating to the below:

• Insurance
• Mounting/framing/glazing
• Packing cases/crates/boxes
• Transport
• Courier expenses including transport, accommodation and per diem

If the loan is cancelled by the Borrower at any point before installation takes place, the Borrower shall be responsible for any costs incurred by the Museum in preparing the objects for the loan.

Security and display

All loan approvals are subject to the Borrower demonstrating they are able to provide adequate security and display conditions for the objects they wish to borrow.

Prior to releasing the objects, the Borrower must provide the below to the Museum’s Registrar for review:

• UKRG Facilities Report, Security Supplement and Display case supplement (where applicable). Blank copies of these can be requested. The Museum will also accept other approved versions, eg American Association of Museums General Facility Report
• Relative humidity and temperature readings from the display area
• Exhibition layout

Unless otherwise agreed with the Museum, alarm systems should be connected by a monitored signalling device to an alarm receiving centre or the emergency services or be monitored 24-hours-a-day by the Borrower's own security personnel. The systems must be maintained in good working condition.

The exhibition space displaying loan objects must be patrolled at regular intervals during opening hours.

Small portable objects must be displayed in locked display cases fitted with anti-bandit laminated glazing meeting British Standard BS 5544 and EN 356 P3A. Glazing must be a minimum of 11.3mm thick or where Perspex or acrylic used 12mm thick.

Paintings, drawings and similar objects must be secured to walls using fixings as agreed between the Museum and the Borrower. Small pictures must not be displayed near windows, fire escapes or entrances and exits to the building.

Unglazed paintings, drawings and similar objects and objects placed on open display must be protected by a physical barrier a minimum distance of one metre from the objects.

The Borrower must report any breach of security at the venue immediately to the named contact at the Museum.

The Museum may request display cases and wall mounted objects are fitted with alarms.

Where display cases are used, once loan objects have been installed, display cases must be closed and locked. Display cases containing loan objects must not be opened without the express written permission of the Museum.

The Borrower must demonstrate they are able to provide the required environmental conditions for the loan objects. The Borrower shall be informed of the required environmental conditions once the objects have been assessed by the Museum’s conservation team. The Borrower shall provide relative humidity and temperature readings to the Museum for approval prior to the objects being released. The Museum may also request light readings are taken at point of installation by the Borrower or the Museum’s courier.

Environmental controls must be in place 24 hours a day and, where possible, lights turned off when the display area is closed to the public. The Borrower must monitor the condition of loan objects throughout the loan period and must inform the Museum of any changes in condition as soon as reasonably possible.

Transport and packing

Unless agreed otherwise, the Borrower is responsible for all transport arrangements. Proposed agent, method and route of transport must be approved by the Museum a minimum of 3 weeks prior to loan objects being released. The Museum reserves the right to veto any transport agents that do not comply with the standards of transport required for the objects.

The Museum shall advise on packing methods, these will vary dependent on the loan objects and type of transport but will usually comprise of the following:

• Acid-free boxes and tissue or plastazote
• Soft-wrapping for art works
• Travel-frames
• Wooden travel crates

Loan objects will usually be packed by the Museum’s Collections Standards and Care team however, where travel-frames or wooden crates are required the Museum reserves the right to request that the loan objects are packed by the selected transport agent under Museum supervision.

Customs

The Borrower is responsible for all customs arrangements and loan objects must not be unpacked for inspection during transit without the permission of the Museum.

Couriers

The Museum reserves the right to request that a courier travels with the loan objects to supervise transport and installation. The Borrower shall be informed of this and any associated courier fees at point of loan approval. The Borrower is responsible for all courier arrangements and costs.

Loss and/or damage

In the event that any loss or damage occurs to the loan objects whilst in the care of the Borrower, the Borrower must inform the Museum as soon as the loss or damage is discovered.

Insurance

Institutions borrowing from the permanent collection are responsible for arranging appropriate insurance or indemnity. All insurance policies and indemnity certificates must be approved by the Registrar before the loan commences.

Where objects are loaned out to National or MOD sponsored museums the Borrower shall agree to cover the cost of repairable damage. The Museum will bear the risk of total loss.

Where objects are approved for inclusion in touring exhibitions, it is the Borrower’s responsibility to arrange appropriate insurance or indemnity at each venue and during transit.

Where object(s) are loaned out to UK non-national museums, in line with section 6.4 of the Government Indemnity Scheme Guidelines for national museums, the borrowing non-national shall meet the cost of any loss of the object(s) up to a limit of £300 per object where the object is valued at less than £4,000 and £300 +1% of the object’s total value where that value is £4,000 or above. The borrowing non-national shall meet the cost of any damage up to £300 where the cost of the damage (excluding depreciation) is less than £4,000 or £300 +1% of the value of the damage where the value of the damage is £4,000 or above. The borrowing non-national can elect to cover the costs of any loss of or damage to the object(s) by purchasing commercial insurance or they may elect to cover costs from existing resources in which case a letter of comfort must be received from the Borrower.

Where objects are loaned out to commercial institutions or overseas borrowers, the objects must be insured under a ‘nail to nail’ fine art insurance policy or, for international loans only, under an approved indemnity scheme providing ‘nail to nail’ cover. All policy wording and indemnity schemes must be approved by the Registrar prior to objects being released.

Valuations

Valuations shall be provided by the Museum prior to loan. The Museum reserves the right to increase valuations, at any time, in line with any market changes applicable to the loan objects.

Photography, filming and press

Permission for the reproduction of images can be obtained from the Museum’s picture library. The Borrower can email info@nam.ac.uk to request this service, charges may be applicable and images must be credited as directed.

Requests for press photography or filming must be submitted to the Registrar for consideration prior to any filming or photography taking place. The Museum reserves the right to ask for a member of Museum staff to supervise.

Loan objects may appear in the background of filming and/or photography without the need for prior permission from the Museum.

Acknowledgement

The Museum must be credited on all object labels associated with the loan object(s). The required credit line is 'On Loan from the Council of the National Army Museum, London'.

The Museum requires two copies of any accompanying exhibition catalogue to be sent to the Registrar.

Agreement

Once the terms of the loan have been agreed between the Museum and the Borrower, the Museum will issue a loan agreement for signature prior to the loan commencing.