Credit History is a crucial aspect of an individual's financial profile. A credit history essentially contains details about your activities as a borrower. It contains details about your borrowing behaviour, repayment habits, and history with lenders. A credit history is important as it reflects on your trustworthiness and creditworthiness. The detrimental factor helps lenders decide whether you are reliable enough to offer loans, credit cards or even employment or rental units in general. If you possess a good credit history, it is highly favourable for you and translates to easier approval of loans, better interest rates and good deals on credit cards. Similarly, a bad credit history will have opposite effects in which you will have a harder time getting loan approvals; some may even face rejection, and you might have to bear higher interest rates.

It is a healthy habit and one of the prerequisites to monitor and check your credit history periodically. It helps you be on par with your credit finances, check for discrepancies, and identify patterns. This helps in managing your credit score meticulously and beneficially. In India, there are multiple ways of checking your credit history, which are either for free or by paying a nominal amount. This article can guide you through how to access your credit history in India and find your financial report.

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Who is responsible for generating credit history?

Before delving into the various tools and services available, you must understand how and where this credit history is managed and/or generated. So, in India, certain Credit Information Companies, also known as CICs, are responsible for managing the credit history of individuals and business organisations. There are four major CICs which are recognised in India-

1. CIBIL- Credit Information Bureau India Limited

2. Equifax

3. CRIF High Mark

4. Experian

These four CICs get their information and personal financial data from banks, non-banking organisations, financial Institutions and lenders to evaluate and generate your Credit history. This information is then fed into a database, which is further used to calculate individual credit scores and reports unique to each individual. This is then made available for individuals to access their credit reports, which further is used by lenders for various purposes like checking their potential for credit, their risks, liabilities, and their position for loan repayment.

Read More:: Is 776 a Good CIBIL Score?

How to check credit history in India

This is a question that most of you may be seeking the answers to. Since managing finances, managing money and evaluating credit history seems like a job reserved for professionals, all of us think that generating a credit report also requires professional help. But that is not necessarily a prerequisite. Any individual desirous of checking their credit history can look it up. There are many methods of getting a credit history report; now let us take a look at how Customers can Check their Credit History-

1. Checking your Credit History from CIBIL – As one of India's most trusted credit bureaus, CIBIL allows consumers to check their credit reports from their bureau. Here is a comprehensive guide on how to check your credit history from CIBIL online.

- Firstly, you need to visit the official website of CIBIL; then, you need to either log in or sign up, depending on whether you are a new or registered user.

- The next step is filling in the details the portal may ask for. This would include information like name, address, employment details, identity, PAN card details, etc., among other things.

- To curb scams and fraudulent activities, the CIBIL website may ask you to answer a few specific security questions to establish your identity. The questions may pertain to your loan or credit card history.

- After completing these steps, you can view your Credit Report. The Credit history will have detailed information about your credit accounts, loans, payment history, inquiries, and current credit rating. This also comes as a downloadable document, which you can download and access at any time.

- CIBIL allows one free Credit history report per year per person. Any other credit report generation will come with service charges after the first free service is used.

2. You can also obtain your credit history from these three bureaus online in India. Generating and downloading your Credit History is similar for the three credit bureaus. You first need to visit the website of any one of them. Depending on your registration, it will ask you to either sign in or log in. You will then be prompted to provide additional details that will be required to recognise your financial profile. After all the information is assessed, you can access your Credit History. All three websites offer free credit report generation for all its users once a year. Apart from that, they also offer financial services and credit monitoring, which will be chargeable.

3. Apart from these credit bureaus, other platforms can also help you get your Credit Report. These are mostly digital platforms like money transfers, digital wallets, financing platforms, online payment services, etc. Some of India's most common and popular ones are Paytm, CRED, Googlepay, Amazonpay, etc. These platforms can also be used to acquire your Credit Report. The process would be the same as outlined above. Although individual platforms may have certain specific processes, the general steps are the same.

Here are the basic steps-

- Log into your digital account on the respective platform. Sign up or register if you do not have an account.

- Find the section that deals with credit report generation. Browse through that and apply for a credit history generation.

- Add in the required details like personal details and financial information etc.

- Your Credit history will now be generated to be viewed and downloaded for further reference.

In this manner, Customers can check their Credit History to be aware of their credit rating. This provides them with the information that is critical when making important financial decisions like loan application, loan approval, credit card approval etc.

Read More:: Is 772 a Good CIBIL Score?

The components of your Credit Report

A credit report is essentially a culmination of your credit behaviour that is shown as a three-digit number. It typically includes the most crucial elements of your credit history like. Here is a list of all the things that are included in your Credit History-

1. Personal details include your name, address, date of birth, contact information, PAN card details and current employment status.

2. List of credit account(s)- This will include a list of your credit accounts that are both closed and active. The data here will account for your credit card details, loans, mortgages and overdrafts.

3. Utilisation of credit- This will reflect how much credit limit has been assigned to you and how much you have used up. It shows whether you are responsible for using your credit or have an erratic spending pattern. It further reflects whether you are a responsible spender or depend on credit for all your expenses.

4. History of payment- this section includes a track record of your payment behaviour- whether you have always maintained a disciplined and timely payment schedule or have a habit of missing or delaying your payments. All of this is reflected in your credit history.

5. Inquiries- another aspect of your credit history is a record of your inquiries regarding loans and credit cards, as well as a record of who else has checked your credit profile, like lenders, banks, etc.

Read More:: What is Experian Credit Score and How It Affects You

Ways in which Credit history can be useful

A credit history is a useful information that can be used to gauge many things. It can be used to assess and evaluate an individual's credit profile. It contains crucial information that reflects many things about the individual. It is a testimony to their financial practices- whether they are disciplined, well-maintained and worthy of being trusted or show signs of erratic financial habits, whether they are a risk for lenders and banks. All of this becomes evident through a careful study of the credit report. A credit history provides a glimpse into a person's financial behaviour- it can be positive and negative, depending on the individual. A positive credit history will open many doors of possibilities. They will be considered as a trustworthy borrower, responsible with finances and will have an easier time getting loan approvals and better deals with credit cards. Whereas a negatively reflected credit history will again bring a negative impact like lesser chances of loan approval, difficulty in acquiring a credit card and higher rates of interest etc. Therefore, a credit history becomes the identifying cover page for an individual- this will be the first thing that banks, lenders and non-banking organisations will look at.

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Conclusion

It is a very simple and fuss-free process to check your Credit History in India. It is a vital piece of information for any individual, and there are various methods that you can use to generate your credit history. It is also a good practice to keep track of your credit score to better manage your finances, check for errors, spot fraudulent activities and ensure that your credit profile accurately represents your credit behaviour. You can use your free yearly credit report service offered by the credit bureaus, register on a monitoring service provided by third-party platforms or request a report from the bureaus- the important thing is to stay informed and well aware of your financial health and this credit history is just the document you require to assess and evaluate all of that. Whether you are planning on diversifying your credit, whether you plan on taking a loan, or making a financial decision however big or small- it is important to know your credit history so that you can map your course accordingly. It is liberating to know where you stand and your possibilities and act accordingly. Even if these things are not on your radar- you can practice regularly monitoring your credit history to avoid discrepancies and stay updated and informed at all times.

FAQs

Is it possible to check for credit history without professional help?

Yes, it is possible to check your credit history without professional help. You can simply use the various online platforms to generate your credit history and access it any time you want.

Do credit bureaus like Equifax and Experian generate the credit history accurately?

Yes, Experian and Equifax are both registered and legal bureaus that are accomplished to generate credit history reports in India. They are accurate and genuine.

Why is a Credit History important?

Credit History is important because it helps lenders get an idea about the creditworthiness and reliability of a potential borrower. It allows lenders to look into past behaviour and gauge the borrower accordingly.

Is checking Credit history free?

Yes, some platforms allow users to generate free credit history for one time in one year. After that, they may charge a nominal amount for the generation of your credit history.

What are the details required to generate credit history?

The most basic details required to generate credit history are – personal details like name, address, date of birth and financial details like PAN card, loan and credit card details.

What factors are considered in a credit history?

A credit history mostly features your credit utilisation, payment history, inquiries, and current credit situation.