Whenever you apply for any type of loan, the foremost requirement by the bank/NBFC is a good credit score. A credit score is often known as a CIBIL score, which ranges between 300 to 900. A higher credit score depicts your trustworthiness, and hence you become a good contender for getting a loan at a low-interest rate.
A person’s past financial behavior always plays a significant role in calculating their credit score. In India, TransUnion CIBIL is the largest credit information company that collects the financial information of all users and generates a credit report accordingly.
Interestingly, many of you know that the CIBIL report is the initial need for any loan; however, you don’t have detailed knowledge about it.
A CIBIL report is the consolidated report that includes a complete CIBIL record of a user, including credit summary, personal information, employment information, loan amount history, contact information, and many more.
Every lender is suggested to consider the CIBIL Report and CIBIL score to cumulatively evaluate whether the user is eligible to take a loan or not.
The credit report of every user is calculated using a proprietary algorithm that ensures minor mistakes. Yet, there are chances of errors, and hence many users complain of having CIBIL Report mistakes.
Primarily, you witness two types of errors in a CIBIL report, i.e., Major mistakes and Minor mistakes.
As the name suggests, minor mistakes include some typos like a misspelled name, wrong DOB, wrong address, etc. Minor mistakes are easy to rectify as you can submit a valid ID to resolve the error. On the other hand, major problems are serious concerns like wrong credit information, loan amount, outstanding balance, etc., which strongly impact your financial reputation.
Visit the CIBIL website to get your report and check for any errors. You must thoroughly check the report and find the possible issues. Common CIBIL report errors include:
Incorrect Loan Balance: The CIBIL report includes your credit balance, which should match your current balance history. The balance should have clear and accurate information about your loan and credit card balance. You should thoroughly check the balance, and it is more often skipped over other information provided in the report.
Incorrect Personal Information: When you fetch your CIBIL report, you often find typos in your name, contact information, or even address. You should check your personal information and ensure every detail is correct as per your PAN card details. Your Pan Card and Aadhar Card must have the same detail. Common details that can be disputed are listed below:
You should check that the CIBIL report shows your current balance. However, it's important to note that there is always a gap between your loan payment and the time your credit history is added to the CIBIL report. This gap can cause an issue in generating accurate and latest CIBIL reports.
Outstanding Loans: This is the crucial section in your CIBIL report which you shouldn't skip at all. You should check and ensure the outstanding loan amount is equivalent to your current loan status. If you have closed any loan account, make sure it is no more enlisted in your credit report.
Duplicate Accounts: In some cases, you might see duplicate accounts associated with your name. In such a case, the probability of errors is high, and it will surely affect your credit score. You should also check for any duplicate accounts which cause variation in your credit score. If you see duplicate accounts, it results in a major change in your score as every transaction is calculated twice.
Account Ownership: You should check the accounts listed in your CIBIL report. In case you find an account that nowhere belongs to you, it's essential to file a dispute and get it removed asap.
If you are new to this niche and still looking forward to filing a dispute for corrections in the CIBIL report, we can help you via easy and predefined steps.
The first step includes visiting the official website of CIBIL Bureau. Click on the dispute resolution section to file your dispute. You need to fill the form to fix your errors. For correction, you should have your CIBIL report as you need to mention the 9-digit CIBIL report number in the form.
Once you fill the form and submit it for rectification, the CIBIL bureau will reach the respective bank to verify your correction and process it. Remember, credit bureaus don't make corrections on their own.
According to the laws, banks are committed to resolving the dispute within 45 days of its raising day. However, you should wait for around 30 days to get any notification about the result. Nowadays, you get an email with the resolution update.
There are cases when the customer doesn't get the expected response from the CIBIL Bureau, and the corrections are not done thoroughly. Once you get a notice about the current dispute, you should check the response and what edits are made to your CIBIL report.
In case you are not satisfied with the corrections, you can file the correction report again. You will follow the same procedure for the second time, and the CIBIL bureau will re-verify your request. If required, you can directly write a letter to Credit Information Bureau (India) Ltd, Hoechst House, 6th Floor, 193, Backbay Reclamation, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400 021.
It's important to know that CIBIL is not authorized to make the requested corrections without verifying your data and details. Whenever you make a correction request, the information is sent to the credit institution for verification. If the requested corrections are legitimate, your dispute will be resolved.
Usually, it takes 30 days for the completion of the dispute process. Moreover, it takes approx seven days to update the record in your CIBIL report after the corrections are approved.
Many of you would think that typos or mistakes in your credit report won't have any impact on your financial journey. However, you should know that with an incorrect credit report, you will face numerous issues that are listed below:
No Loan Approval: In case your credit report isn't accurate due to mistakes in personal details, business details, etc., it will become challenging to get a loan. Until you have a legit CIBIL report, the ledger won't proceed with your request for any type of loan.
High-Interest Rate: Often, people find low credit score listed in their CIBIL report, even when they don't have any negative credit history. Such mistakes have a strong impact on the interest rate. People with mistakenly given bad credit score get loans with high-interest rates. A high-interest rate means you have to pay higher EMIs.
Lengthy Approval Time: You are always given interest rate and associated loan amount based on your CIBIL score. If your credit report has mistakes, you either get higher interest rates (as mentioned above), or you prefer to file the dispute for correction. It takes more than a month for revisions in your CIBIL report. If you are looking for an instant loan, it will be tough to get approval immediately.
So, you should know the downside of having mistakes in your credit report. Many users get low credit score even after correction. For such users, it's essential to follow some steps that can help them improve their credit score and make a strong CIBIL report.
Paying Bills on Time: If you already own a credit card or any other loan type, you should repay them on time. Every missed EMI will have an impact on your credit score.
Don’t Use 100% Credit Limit: Every user has a specific credit limit to borrow from their credit card or lender. It's good to use only what’s required. Using maximum credit will affect your credit score negatively.
Also Read- How Long Do Loan Defaults Stay On Your CIBIL Report?
Avoid Taking Too Many Unsecured Loans: Unsecured loans come with high-interest rates. Moreover, taking too many unsecured loans puts a question on your repayment credibility.
Continue Using Your Old Credit Accounts: Whether you have an old credit card or loan account, it's always good to close the latest credits and continue using the old accounts. This will help you increase in credit score.
With that said, you are now well prepared to understand what your CIBIL report includes and what you should do in case you find any mistakes.
When it comes to your CIBIL report, you should check it regularly to ensure all details are listed correctly. Importantly, you should check the report months before planning for a loan. This is because you get enough time for corrections in case there are any errors. This way, you will have a legitimate and correct CIBIL report that helps you get the desired loan amount.