A wrong entry on your credit report - a loan you never took, a closed card shown as overdue, a "settled" status you paid in full - can cost you a home loan or push up your interest rate. In India, the fix is a dispute with the credit bureau and the lender, and since April 2024 delays cost them money.
Step 1: get your report from every bureau
India has four credit information companies (CICs): TransUnion CIBIL, Experian, Equifax and CRIF High Mark. You're entitled to one free full report a year from each. Lenders report to all four, so an error may show on one and not another.
Step 2: identify the error type
- Not my account - loan or card you never took (possible identity fraud).
- Wrong status - "overdue", "written off" or "settled" on an account you closed in full.
- Wrong amounts or DPD (days past due) - late payments that weren't late.
- Duplicate account.
- Personal details - wrong name, PAN, date of birth, address.
Step 3: raise the dispute
On CIBIL: myscore.cibil.com → Dispute Centre → select the section and account → describe the error. Do the same on the other bureaus' websites where the error appears. Attach proof: NOC / closure letter, bank statements showing payment, settlement letter.
Also write to the lender (the "credit institution") - the bureau forwards the dispute to them, but a direct letter with your proof speeds it up.
Step 4: the timeline - and the ₹100/day
Under the RBI's 2023 framework (effective April 2024):
- A complaint must be resolved within 30 calendar days - the lender gets 21 days, the bureau the remaining 9.
- If not, you get ₹100 for every calendar day of delay, shared between them according to who caused it, paid within 5 working days of resolution.
- If the bureau rejects your request, it must tell you the reason.
Step 5: escalate
No fix within 30 days, or an unfair rejection: complain to the RBI Integrated Ombudsman at cms.rbi.org.in. CICs are covered by the scheme. You must complain to the entity first.
"Settled" vs "closed"
"Settled" means the lender accepted less than the full amount - it hurts your score for years. If you've since paid the full outstanding, ask the lender to update the status to "closed" and issue an NOC, then dispute with the bureaus.
Generate your dispute letters - one to the bureau and one to the lender, citing the RBI timelines.