What is a Credit Report?

The credit cards you use, the loans you’ve taken are all recorded in your Credit Report. Your report is a summary of how well you’ve handled your credit accounts. This includes all types of accounts and your payment history, which tells how well you've paid your loan EMIs and credit card dues.

What's in a Credit Report?

It includes all your personal information, type of account and payment history of credit accounts. Potential lenders use a credit report as part of their decision-making process. This helps them to decide whether you are creditworthy and are capable of paying back the loan or credit card dues on time.

The information on credit reports is the raw material used to create credit scores. Your scores can have a big impact on your financial life. If you have a good and a long credit history, your scores will be positive. A good score will help you to get quick loan approvals and best deals on credit cards. Conversely, bad financial habits will result in low credit scores, which can make it harder for you to get approved for new loans or credit cards.

Personal Information

• Your name
• Date of birth
• Current & former residential address
• Phone numbers

Credit Account

• Current and historical credit accounts like loans, credit cards, mortgage, etc.
• The Credit Limit
• Cosigner information
• Monthly payment
• Recent account balance
• The date the account was opened and closed

Public Records

• Bankruptcies
• Civil suits and judgments

Why should you Check your Credit Report?

Regularly reviewing & monitoring your credit report should be your priority. A credit report tells a lot about your financial background, helping lenders to make the right decision of lending you credit.

It is suggested that you should check your scores 6-12 months before applying for a loan. In case, your credit scores are low, you can have the time to improve it.

A credit report can even serve as a sentinel against consumer fraud and Identity Theft. If you find any account in your report, which you haven't opened, you should immediately report to the credit bureau and the respective creditor.

Credit Report Companies

CIBIL Score, CRIF High Mark, Equifax and Experian are the four RBI-registered Credit Bureaus in India. The bureaus help determine your Credit Score. Despite consistent credit reports, you may still have different credit scores from each of the bureaus. This is because each bureau uses different formulas and scoring models.

Typically, here’s how the Credit Score Ranges look like--

  Despite the different scoring model, bureaus focus on the same five risk factors that determine a credit score:

• Payment history
• Amount owed
• Length of credit history
• Credit mix
• New credit

Accessing your Credit Report

You are eligible for a free credit report annually by all four credit bureaus in India. Your report is compiled when you or your lender request it. Since lenders review every detail in your report, ensure you regularly check your report for accuracy. Ensure all the information in your report is accurate. In case of any errors, raise it to the credit bureau immediately and get it rectified.