How to Check Your CIBIL Score for Free and What to Do If There Are Errors in It

When it comes to loans and getting approved for them, the credit score or the CIBIL score plays an important role in the whole process. The credit score is a three-digit number between 300 and 900 that indicates a borrower’s financial health and ability to repay loan on time. The closer a borrower’s CIBIL score is to 900, the better is the borrower’s financial standing and chances of getting approved for a loan on profitable terms and conditions. TransUnion CIBIL is the most famous credit information bureau in India and the credit score it assigns borrowers is known as the CIBIL score.  

A borrower’s credit score or CIBIL score is calculated based on their credit report, which is a digital representation of a borrower’s past repayment behaviour, the number of loans they already have, the loans they have paid off, the new credit card applications they have made, the loans they have been approved and rejected for, the kind of loans they already have, etc. All lenders check a borrower’s credit report before they take a call on their loan application as well as the loan terms and conditions to be extended to a borrower. The basis of a credit report is the information provided to lenders by the financial institutions that a borrower is working with. Sometimes, lenders pass on wrong information to credit rating agencies and credit information bureaus, which leads to wrong CIBIL scores. Borrowers must, therefore, check their CIBIL report once every few months and make sure there are no errors in its. Before we discuss the types of CIBIL errors and how to resolve credit report errors, let us look at how to check one’s CIBIL score for free.  

How to Check Your CIBIL Score for Free

Borrowers should check their CIBIL score from time to time for two different reasons. First, lenders check a borrower’s CIBIL score before taking a call on their loan application. A low CIBIL score inevitably leads to loan rejection. Checking one’s CIBIL score regularly allows a borrower to take corrective measures in case their CIBIL score is not as good as it should be and improve their chances of loan approval in near future. Further, checking one’s CIBIL report is also important to find out and resolve credit report errors. 

These days, many websites allow borrowers to check their CIBIL score for free. The process is simple, go to the website offering this service for free. You will be required to share a few details about you, such as your name, email address, income and PAN details, etc. These details help these websites figure out the right borrower while fetching credit score details. Enter the required details and you will be shown your CIBIL score within a few seconds. However, if you want access to your CIBIL report, you will have to contact TransUnion CIBIL. In this case, based on the subscription plan you choose and the number of times you wish to get your credit report in a year, you will be required to pay a small fee. Let us now look at the different types of CIBIL errors and how to resolve these errors. 

Also Read: Why Is It Important to Check Your Credit Report and How Often? 

Common CIBIL Report Problems and Types of CIBIL Errors

It is not uncommon for errors to appear in a borrower’s CIBIL report. Let us look at the different types of CIBIL errors.  

Inaccurate Current Balance

This is the most common CIBIL report error. TransUnion CIBIL produces CIBIL reports every month. However, the borrowers get their CIBIL report 45 days after requesting them. Thus, sometimes, even when a borrower has cleared all payments before the due date, the last payments made do not reflect in the report. This is a common error and there is nothing you should do about it. This is an error that will get automatically resolved once TransUnion CIBIL updates your credit report.  

Incorrect Account Details

Lenders maintain records of millions of customers. Thus, sometimes, details get mixed up. Thus, at times, your CIBIL report may show details on your credit report that do not match with the details on your PAN Card or other ID proof. This is another error that must be reported immediately as it can lead to your identity getting mixed up with someone who cannot be trusted with loan repayment. If this happens, your chances of getting approved for a loan will go down considerably.  

Duplicate Accounts 

Sometimes, a borrower’s CIBIL report reflects multiple loan accounts. This can again hamper a borrower’s CIBIL score as well as their ability to avail of loan. Therefore, a borrower must report this error immediately.  

Ownership Issues

Sometimes, credit reports reflect the wrong outstanding loan amount. Your credit score may show an amount much higher or lower than you currently owe. If this is the case, report the error to TransUnion CIBIL immediately.  

Also Read: A Helpful Guide to Understanding Your Credit Report 

How to Resolve Credit Score Report Errors 

Resolving credit score report errors is easy. All a borrower has to do is bring the error to TransUnion CIBIL’s notice by filing an online CIBIL online dispute form available on TransUnion CIBIL’s website.  While filing out this form, the borrower will need to provide their control number, which is a nine-digit number that one can find on their credit information report. Once TransUnion CIBIL receives your online dispute form, they will contact the concerned bank or lender and ask them for clarity on the complaint filed by you. Once CIBIL receives an answer from them, the applicant is notified through an email. If the applicant is satisfied with the answer provided, the query is resolved and the credit report is updated and sent again to the applicant or the borrower. However, if the applicant is not happy with the answer, they must initiate another CIBIL dispute request. Borrowers and credit users must understand that CIBIL cannot make any changes to a credit user’s report without seeking clarity from the concerned bank or lender. Therefore, updating CIBIL report errors takes time, which is also the reason why borrowers are asked to check their CIBIL score/report often and report errors as soon as they are detected.  

Please be informed that CIBIL takes up to 30 days to resolve disputes and it will take another few weeks for the changes made to reflect in your credit report. So, if you are planning to apply for a housing loan soon, check your CIBIL report and make sure your CIBIL score has no errors and is in the good range.