Here are the FAQs from CIBIL
Get your own CIBIL report on the site
Q.1 What is the CIBIL Credit Report?
CIBIL Credit Report is a factual record of your credit payment history compiled from information received from different credit grantors. Credit grantors are leading Banks, Financial Institutions, State Financial Corporations, Non-Banking Financial Companies, Housing Finance Companies, Credit Card Companies, who are Members of CIBIL. The purpose is to help credit grantors make informed lending decisions - quickly and objectively, and enable faster processing of your credit applications to provide you speedier access to credit at better terms.
Q.2 Where does CIBIL get the information from?
All leading banks and financial institutions are members of CIBIL. CIBIL collects information from these Members, collates and disseminates it in order to create a truly comprehensive snapshot of a borrower's credit history.
Q.3 What type of information on a borrower is available in the CIR?
The CIBIL Credit Report includes the following information:
- Basic borrower information like:
- Name
- Address
- Identification numbers
- PAN number
- Passport number
- Voters number
- Telephone number
- Date of Birth
- Records of all the credit facilities availed by the borrower
- Past payment history
- Amount overdue
- Number of inquiries made on that borrower, by different Members
- Suit-filed status.
Q.4 What type of information is NOT included in the CIBIL Credit Report?
The CIR does not contain:
- Income / Revenue details
- Amount(s) deposited with the bank
- Details of borrowers' assets
- Details of investment(s)
Q.5 When is a credit facility classified as 'default'?
CIBIL does not classify any accounts as default accounts or any borrowers as defaulters. It merely reflects this information after the Member has classified it as such. The Number of Days Past Due and / or Asset Classification as per RBI definition as submitted by Members is reflected in the CIBIL Credit Report.
Q.6 Does the CIBIL Credit Report indicate if credit should or should not be given?
The CIBIL Credit Report only provides available factual credit information as submitted by CIBIL members and does not provide any opinion, indication or comment pertaining to whether credit should or should not be granted. The credit grantors who have received an application for credit will make their own credit decision depending on their risk management policies. CIBIL does not grant or deny credit.
Q.7 How do I ensure that a CIR drawn on me as an individual / organization does not contain negative information?
The best preventive measure is to exercise good money management practices and make repayments on time. Please see 'Manage credit' section for more details.
Q.8. If I am a first-time borrower, will I be at a disadvantage as there will be no information on me?
As a new borrower, there will be a new file created for you. It will then be in your interest to build up a favorable repayment track record for future credit applications.
Accessing Information from CIBIL
Q.9 Who can access CIBIL Credit Reports?
CIBIL Members, which include leading Banks and Financial Institutions, can access information from CIBIL on the principle of reciprocity i.e. only those Members who have provided all their data to CIBIL are permitted to access CIBIL Credit Reports. Members can do so only to take valid credit decisions. Disclosure to any other person or entity is prohibited.
Individuals can also request access to their Credit Reports directly from CIBIL. Please refer to the section on 'Access Your CIBIL Credit Report'
Q.10 Can the borrower obtain his own CIBIL Credit Report from CIBIL?
Yes a borrower can now obtain his/her CIBIL Credit Report from CIBIL. Please refer to the section on 'Access Your CIBIL Credit Report'
Q.11 How can I access my CIBIL Credit Report from CIBIL?
Please refer to the section on 'Access Your CIBIL Credit Report'
Q.12 Can CIBIL provide Credit Reports to credit providers in other countries?
No. CIBIL will provide credit information reports only to its Members and consumers in India.
Q.13 Whether Right to Information Act, 2005 is applicable to CIBIL?
No. CIBIL is not a "Public Authority" as defined under Sec 2(h) of the Right to Information Act, 2005.
Rectifying Information in your CIR
Q.14. How does an individual rectify information in his/her CIBIL Credit Report?
You should follow the below process for rectification of credit information in your CIBIL Credit Report.
- Step 1: Access your Credit Report from CIBIL. Link to the section- 'Access Your CIBIL Credit Report' Please refer to the section on 'Access Your CIBIL Credit Report'
- Step 2: Identify the error in your report and write to consumerqueries@cibil.com with your queries.
- Step 3: Contact the related credit grantor(s) immediately and inform them of the error by providing them with the necessary proof of having cleared your dues
- Step 4: Once the credit grantor validates the error (s), they will re-submit the updated information to CIBIL.
Lending decisions
Q.15 If my credit application has been rejected; will this fact appear in my credit record?
Members do not provide this information to CIBIL and hence it will not be in the CIBIL Credit Report.
Q.16. If a credit grantor has denied me credit, could others reject my application?
Not necessarily. Different credit grantors may use a CIBIL Credit Report differently, or take into account other factors when they assess your application. Although one bank may deny you credit, another bank could take a different view and accept your application. Every credit institution has its own level of risk appetite related to granting credit, which is based on their credit and risk management policies.
Q.17. Who decides if I get my loan?
Loan officers decide if you get your loan. CIBIL Credit Reports are tools the loan officer uses to help make the credit granting decision. Lenders vary in how they interpret the information on the CIBIL Credit Report and credit score. Variations might also include how they weigh the importance of income, length of employment, and value of assets and collateral.
Q.18. Why was I denied credit?
CIBIL does not grant or deny credit. Each lender/insurer has its own formula for evaluating an application, and only the lender can tell you why the decision was made. CIBIL's role is to supply the lender with the CIBIL Credit Report, which assists them in making informed credit decisions. Apart from the CIBIL Credit Report banks can also evaluate other criteria like your income, length of residence, or employment details etc.
Benefits of CIBIL to Consumers
Q.19. What are the benefits of having a good credit history? What benefits does a consumer get from CIBIL?
Speedier access to credit
Credit Information Reports facilitate faster and more objective lending decisions. A good credit history therefore implies cost efficiencies for Credit institutions and faster access to credit for consumers at better terms.
Availability of credit at better terms
In addition to speed and convenience, credit information reporting can also help make availability of credit at better terms for borrowers. This means that millions of Indian borrowers can now benefit with lenders increasingly adopting the Credit Information Reports as a crucial parameter in their credit decisioning process.
CIBIL Credit Reports are aimed at helping credit grantors make fast and objective lending decisions. CIBIL's information helps
- Empower financially disciplined consumers avail credit faster and at better terms.
- Inculcate sensitivity and financial discipline in credit industry in India
Q.20. What are the macro benefits of Credit Information Bureaus?
Credit Information Bureaus are set up with the core purpose of creating a sound lending environment to increase credit penetration thereby aiding economic prosperity and growth.
World Bank reports indicate that countries having Credit Information Bureau's have shown improved lending performance and increased credit penetrations. The broad and consistent conclusions across many studies are that: Credit Information Bureaus allow borrowers to have
- Greater access to credit, in the form of a greater acceptance rate for a given default level;
- Fairer access to credit, in the form of a greater proportion of those traditionally underserved (women, and lower-income group) being accepted; and
- Improved lending performance, in the sense of lower default rates.
via CIBIL.com