Check your credit report; raise a dispute on 'invalid' score reduction

If your credit score has declined, get your credit report and check for discrepancies, then decide whether to raise a dispute

The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) moratorium on payment of equated monthly instalments (EMIs) ended on August 31. Many borrowers had deferred their EMI payments from March till August, with the assurance that their credit score would not be impacted.

Manu Sehgal, business development and strategy leader, Equifax India, says, “The RBI had specified that taking an EMI moratorium would not qualify as default for the purpose of reporting to credit information companies (CICs) by the lending institutions.”

Media reports indicate that many borrowers’ credit scores have slipped after they availed of the moratorium, despite the RBI’s rule.

A CIBIL spokesperson says, “Lending