A credit report is a summary of an individual’s credit history. It comprises of an individual’s repayment and borrowing history. A credit report gives lenders and banks a look at your credit worthiness. The report helps them take a sound decision about lending money to an individual based on the credit report. A total of four credit bureaus in India are authorised by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to issue credit reports. CIBIL (Credit Information Bureau India Limited) which stands for Credit Information Bureau India Private Limited is one of the four credit bureaus. It collects an individual’s information from banks and Non-Banking Finance Companies (NBFC). This information is then curated and analysed over a period of time which then results into a credit report.
Analysing the CIBIL Report
As mentioned earlier, a credit report gives lenders and banks a snapshot of an individual’s credit history. It is important for an individual to know and understand what information is present on their credit report.
A CIBIL credit report consists of various sections that offer detailed information about an individual and his/her credit score and history. Here are the six sections that are present in the credit report:
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CIBIL Score: The first section of the CIR (Credit Information Report) is the cibil score. A cibil score is a three digit number that ranges between 300-900. It is calculated based on an individual’s credit behaviour and credit history. An individual with a high credit score has a better possibility of a loan or credit card approval from the bank. A credit score of 750 and above is considered as an ideal while anything below 300 indicates a bad credit history. An individual can get a one-time free credit score from CIBIL’s official website.
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Personal Information: This section contains your personal details like name, date of birth, voter ID, passport number, PAN number and other identity proof that is present with CIBIL. Information provided through lenders who have dealt with you directly will be marked with the letter “e” against the relevant details.
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Contact Information: Up to four addresses including permanent, office and temporary addresses are present in this section. It will also have email IDs and phone numbers that are provided by the lenders.
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Employment Information: This section has details about your employment type and income. In case of two different applications, this data can vary.
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Account Information: This is another important section in the credit report. It consists of all the information related to loan and credit card. Details like lender’s name, date of initiation, date of last payment, amount of loan or overdue, account holder type - joint or individual, amount of loan or overdue, total outstanding and a month-based record of payments made for the past 3 years are present in this section. If you encounter a red band covering any information here, it means that particular information is disputed. You could probably discuss with the lender on the same and get it sorted through a letter of clarification. Based on the lender’s input, the red band may or may not be removed.
- Enquiries Information: This section will have all the enquiries made by banks and NBFC about your credit score. It will give you an idea about lenders that are considering you as a prospective customer.
Glossary of Terms
The CIR consists of several terms in addition to the aforementioned information. Below is a list of terms that will help you understand CIR in a better way:
- DPD: Days Past Due shows the number of days has passed since the due date of the payment. It must be noted that anything over zero or even ‘Standard’ is bad.
- CN: Control Number is mentioned at the top of the document. It acts as a reference number in case there is some incorrect information in the credit report.
- Settlement Amount: If there is a payment dispute, the borrower and the lender might agree on an amount that is less than the actual amount payable, while the remaining is written off.
- Written off Amount: When a loan is written off there is an interest and principal component. This field reflects the total interest and principal amount written-off.
- Amount Overdue: Indicates the total amount that has not been paid to the lender within a particular time limit.
