Credit score as an essential part of financial services has slowly caught up in India over the past few years. There are also more players in the market compared to as recently as a little over a decade ago. That said, in a shift from purely financial services, the usage of credit scores is now moving towards alternate services including telecom providers.
In fact, landlords tend to refer to credit scores prior to renting out their property, as do prospective employers to understand how reliable and trustworthy an employee will prove to be, especially when it comes to hiring for job openings involving confidentiality and trust. On a more personal front, people are requesting for credit reports even when finalising marriages!
What is a CIBIL score?
CIBIL is India’s oldest credit bureau, and hence enjoys the privilege of having credit scores being referred to as CIBIL scores colloquially. A score ranges between 300 and 900, and a higher score can prove to be advantageous when applying for a fresh line of credit.
In addition to CIBIL, there are three other credit bureaus, namely Equifax, Experian and CRIF High Mark operating in India as on date.
What is a free credit score?
In the USA, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the credit bureaus – namely Equifax, Experian and TransUnion – to provide a consumer with a free copy of the credit report, at the customer’s request, once every 12 months. These reports can be ordered simultaneously, or one from each company at a time. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the consumer protection agency in the United States enforces the FCRA with respect to credit information companies or bureaus.
In India however none of the credit bureaus offer free credit reports or scores currently, they are available to purchase on payment of a nominal fee. The process to obtain a score is both quick and easy, and it is recommended to check your score at regular intervals.
However, if you wish to have a free credit report, log on to www.creditsudhaar.com, wherein India’s premier credit health management company in conjunction with the bureau offers a free credit report.
Why do we need CIBIL reports?
Seeing the significance that CIBIL report has assumed in the recent past, it is only prudent for an individual to monitor and keep track of their scores. Hence the requirement for scores is paramount, and a free score would go a long way in promoting awareness and increasing usage of reports countrywide.
Take for example a case wherein Nitin applies for a home loan. Owing to a good score, his loan is approved at a competitive rate of interest in comparison to Sumit, who has a relatively lower score and hence gets a similar home loan at a higher rate. This results in substantial savings for Nitin over the tenure of the loan, a privilege that Sumit does not enjoy.
Hence, in order to remain credit healthy and financially fit, it is imperative to have a good credit score.
What should be my next step?
From the options currently available, do call for a report and check it at length together with your credit score. You can choose to avail of the services of a credit health management company if you believe that your score needs attention, and can be improved. Working with a trained credit counsellor, you can rebuild your score and even enhance it given time and financial discipline.
Remember, it is the first step towards ensuring a secure financial future, so get started now.
(Written by Arun Ramamurthy, author of “Unlock the Power of Your Credit Score” : India’s first book on credit scores)
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I don’t think they are claiming to give out free CIBIL scores in the article! They have raised a pretty good point of how USA gives out a free credit report to its citizens every year and how Indians should be entitled a free credit score every year too. It’s such an important part of our financial life, and every citizen should be allowed to know about them free. It helps us maintain our credit easier if we are aware of our credit scores
I don’t think they are claiming to give out free CIBIL scores in the article! They have raised a pretty good point of how USA gives out a free credit report to its citizens every year and how Indians should be entitled a free CIBIL score every year too. It’s such an important part of our financial life, and every citizen should be allowed to know about them free. It becomes so much easier to manage your credit if you are aware of your credit scores
Should I post this? – I don’t think they are claiming to give out free CIBIL scores in the article! They have raised a pretty good point of how USA gives out a free credit report to its citizens every year and how Indians should be entitled a free credit score every year too. It’s such an important part of our financial life, and every citizen should be allowed to know about them free. It becomes to manage your credit if you are aware of your credit scores’
TAG GURU ! WAKE UP ! Once your Site’s reliability is damaged and someone else takes over, It will almost be impossible to restore faith. Please show courage to reply to readers posts / perception about the useless article posted as above.
Tax guru website has to take care before publishing article. When CIBIL score is not free, how Tax guru website allowed to publish this article in the website.
These kind of Marketing tricks, degrade the reliability on Tax Guru website.
Hence, I request to Tax Guru website to take care before publishing the same.
This website is non functional. It took all my information and didn’t give me anything in return – also they told that they will call back but didn’t call.
(1) CIBIL is charging rs 500 for the report. Please provide the website from we can get the CIBIL report FOC. (2) I had earlier found my report to be defective, one loan closed earlier was showing as overdue, hence the authenticity of CIBIL report is doubtful. I HAD TO LITERALLY BEG BEFORE THE FI TO MAKE CORRECT REPORT OF THE CLOSED LOAN, SO THAT I COULD AVAIL ANOTHER FACILITY FROM BANK.
ALL THESE CREDIT RATING AGENCIES ARE BULLSHIT AND MAKING MONEY FROM POOR AND INNOCENT PEOPLE. DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME ON THESE IDIOTS.
free cibil kese dekhe cibil rate 500 rs bata raha hain
Fake website didn’t know anything
I recently purchased a CIBIL Report through ICICI Direct .
This report was a defective one as I had taken a loan which was not mentioned in the report.
I requested many times to correct it but is still pending.
creditsudhaar.com is fake website. Kindly dont use it. Author is advised that such website should not be mentioned in the article, before its validating its authenticity.
Cibil score is often adversly affected due to inefficiency of credit companies.when the fault is identified,the credit agency should be penalised for not providing accurate information.
Din’t found any free access
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN CIBIL DO NOT UPDATE THEIR INFORMATION ON LOANS REPAID BY BORROWERS AS CIBIL NEVER CHECKS WITH BANKS AND SIMPLY PUTS THE ONUS STATING THAT BANKS HAVE TO FURNISH SUCH INFORMATION OF LOANS REPAID BY BORROWERS, TO CIBIL.
IT IS HIGH TIME PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION SHOULD BE FILED AGAINST CIBIL IN THE INTEREST OF BORROWERS TO PUT THE RESPONSIBILITY ON CIBIL THAT BEFORE ISSUING REPORTS ON CREDIT SCORE CIBIL HAS TO MANDATORILY CONFIRM FROM BANKS ABOUT THE STATUS OF LOAN OF BORROWERS AND THEN ONLY ISSUE REPORTS OF CREDIT SCORE TO BANKS.WE ALL CAN BE SURE THAT WRONG REPORTS OR NOT UPDATED INFORMATION OF LOANS REPAID BY BORROWERS LEADS TO REJECTION OF LOAN APPLICATIONS. CIBIL CANNOT RUN AWAY BY PUTTING THE BLAME ON BANKS STATING THAT IT IS THE DUTY OF BANKS TO INFORM CIBIL ON LOANS REPAID.
This website is non functional. It took all my information and didn’t give me anything in return
i have one query??
I have seen one of the CIBIL report and at one place in bureau response summary – response shown as HIT !!
what does it means?
pls reply
thanks
Credit sudhaar is just marketing gimmick. Don’t waste your time on it.
pls iam aloso interest this seminor thank uou
free cibil score – not free,
In yhe cibil score we got some misconduct. Even if repayment of loans in bank, the banker are not updating the same in CIBIL.In the CIBUIL list the outstanding still shows even if we have made the repayments. In that case we get less score. We are having with us the No dues certificates fron respective bank. Then in this what we can do ?
IT IS FOUND THAT CREDIT SUDHAR, CIBIL AND OTHER SUCH DEBT MANAGING PEOPLE ACT AS INFORMER AND BLACK MAILERS, THEY SIMPLY TAKE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION AND ASK GOOD AMOUNT IN THE PRETEXT OF OF CLEARING OR IMPROVING YOUR CREDIT SCORE
#Marketing, Dint found any free access
Cibil became a tool in the hands of certsin unscrupulous companies such as standard chartered bank for the purpose of blackmailing credit card holders to pay large inflated amounts to get rid of their names from the cibil deaulter list. See the web of S C Bank.
Could you please clarify the genuineness of creditsudhaar.
moneylife.in/article/credit-sudhaar/40461.html
It is not working the website is pulling all the personal details.