Equifax Credit Score vs CIBIL Score

Indian lenders and borrowers have been engaging with the credit bureaus such as CIBIL and Equifax for a myriad of reasons. While CIBIL was inaugurated in the year 2000, its relatively lesser-known counterpart Equifax entered the Indian market 10 years after CIBIL’s debut. Both credit bureaus are based in Mumbai.

Equifax and CIBIL receive data regarding individuals’ credit-related transactions from Indian financial institutions. They then collate this data in a report format so that lenders can view or refer to it in order to get a sense of a borrower’s financial status or credit history. The two agencies perform almost similar functions. However, certain differences exist between the manner in which the two entities provide credit information reports and perform dispute redressal services. This article will take you through the similarities and differences between CIBIL and Equifax and the respective reports issued by them.

In order to avail your Equifax credit score and information report, you will have to furnish self-attested hard copies of documents that will count as your address as well as identity proofs and mail it to the bureau on the address specified on Equifax’s online portal with the demand draft. Getting your CIBIL credit score or information report is, however, a much simpler process. Details on how to acquire a credit report from CIBIL can be keyed in online.

The verification process can be carried out on the internet itself. The payment process, as mentioned earlier, can also be carried out on the portal itself through either net banking or with the help of a credit/debit card. You will only need to furnish, self-attest and mail the relevant and prescribed documents to CIBIL if the online verification process does not go through.

• Response Time

CIBIL delivers your requested documents to your registered email ID within a matter of minutes. In the case of Equifax, it could take anywhere between 5 to 7 working days for them to post it to you.

• Network

As CIBIL is a relatively older credit information-dispensing organisation as compared to Equifax, it has a larger network of banks and financial institutions which provide it with information pertaining to their clients/consumers’ credit-relation transactions. Hence, if you want to access information about your credit history from before 2010, it would be wise to make a request to CIBIL via their online portal for the same.

Both the credit bureaus have similar grievance redressal and redressal processes. In case you find a discrepancy/anomaly in your credit reports, you must immediately navigate to the web portals of the bureaus and raise your concerns in their prescribed manner. In CIBIL’s case, the entire grievance/dispute redressal process can be carried out online and the self-attested hard copies only need to be furnished and filed if the online verification process does not go through.

If you have to interact with Equifax regarding any discrepancies in your Equifax credit score, the process is entirely offline. However, both the agencies take a similar amount of time (30-45 days) in order to either resolve or update the customer in question.

Having a sense of urgency when it comes to reporting anomalies in your credit reports is very important. A discrepancy could mean that the officials have made a mistake in supplying your information to relevant authorities. Sometimes, a credit report that is inconsistent to the kind of credit behaviour you remember exhibiting could also mean that fraudulent practices are at play.

One credit report from either CIBIL or Equifax should ideally be sufficient, but it is always advisable to gather as many credit reports as possible from the agencies to get a holistic picture of your credit health. A lender, while considering an applicant for a loan, also has to examine multiple credit reports before approving the same.

CIBIL and Equifax give a score to a borrower between the range 300-900. However, the parameters on which the two bureaus assess a customer’s credit health can vary slightly, which could result in credit scores being slightly different on both the reports. If the difference is more than 50 points, you must contact either of them or both immediately.

You can learn more about CIBIL and what your CIBIL score signifies on Bajaj Markets. We have tie-ups with some of the biggest Indian lending institutions that provide borrowing options in the form of the likes of a home loan, personal loan and business loan, amongst others. In addition to the same, we provide a free financial health report. Get a step closer to your dreams by availing a loan from the Bajaj Markets portal now!