Equifax Credit Report & Score Explained

Equifax is among the four largest credit reporting agencies in India along with CIBIL, Experian, and CRIF Highmark. It started providing its services in India in 2010 and has become a prominent credit bureau so far. It collects the credit information of individuals and commercials from different financial institutions and prepares their credit reports and score on the basis of their financial behavior. What makes Equifax different from other credit bureaus is: it also provides its consumers with their portfolio scores, risk scores, portfolio management, and fraud management reports along with the credit score and report. To know more about this credit bureau, keep reading the information given below:

What is an Equifax Credit Score?

An Equifax credit score is a three-digit credit score calculated by the credit bureau, Equifax India. It is a number between 300 and 850 that shows how creditworthy an individual is. A number close to 300 represents a risky borrower whereas a number close to 850 represents a responsible and trustworthy individual. It is calculated on the basis of the credit history of an individual, which includes payment history, credit utilization, number of hard inquiries, and several more factors. Following is how your credit score represents your creditworthiness:

- An Equifax score between 300 and 579 is considered poor and represents an irresponsible and risky individual. With this score, it is almost impossible for you to get approved for a credit card or loan of your choice.

Also Read: How To Apply For a Credit Card and Get Approved

An Equifax score between 580 and 669 is considered fair and represents an individual who has either just started his credit journey or who has delayed payments several times. It is also not a good score for lenders to trust you, but some of them might still provide you with credit, but with high-interest rates.
An Equifax score between 670 and 739 is considered a good credit score and it represents an individual who is not very risky as a borrower. It is a decent enough credit score to help you get credit cards and loans of your choice, but you can still miss some best deals.
An Equifax score between 740 and 799 is considered a very good score and lenders can easily trust an individual with such a score.
An Equifax score above 800 is an excellent score and represents an individual who has hardly missed a payment in his credit journey. Having this score can help you get the best credit cards and loan deals with the lowest interest rates.

How To Get Your Equifax Credit Report For Free?

Like other major credit bureaus, Equifax also provides you with a free credit report every year. You can get it by following a few simple steps as mentioned below:

Visit the official website of Equifax India and click on ‘Login.’
If you are a first-time user, click on ‘Sign up.’
Create your account using your name, mobile number, and email address.
Verify your contact details by entering the OTP.
Enter other required details, including Aadhar card, PAN Card, address, etc.
Review your details and submit.
Now click on the ‘get your free credit score’ option on your dashboard.

How To Get Unlimited Equifax Credit Report & Score?

To get your Equifax credit report unlimited times, you need to follow the same steps as mentioned above, but you are charged a nominal fee for that. The charges for getting your Equifax Credit report unlimited times are as follows:

Rs. 250 for unlimited credit report and credit score checks for 1 month.
Rs. 450 for unlimited credit report and credit score checks for 1 quarter (3 months).
Rs. 900 for unlimited credit report and credit score checks for 1 year.

How To Get an Inaccurate Information Corrected in Your Equifax Credit Report?

If you find any inaccurate or missing information in your Equifax credit report, you can raise a dispute against it to get it corrected. Following are the steps to raise a dispute:

Down the Dispute resolution form from the Equifax official website or by clicking here.
Attach your identity and address proof along with the form.
If you have any additional queries, you can write them on paper and attract them along with the form and other documents.
Send the resolution form along with all the documents to the postal address mentioned on the official website.

What Are The Things Mentioned in Your Equifax Credit Report?

Personal Information – Your credit report contains a section of your personal information that includes your name, mobile number, email address, current/permanent/office addresses, etc. However, this information has nothing to do with your credit score, it is just mentioned for your identification.

Employment Information – This section includes a summary of your employment. For example, it tells whether you are salaried or self-employed. Your current/past employer’s name can also be mentioned in it, but your monthly/annual income will never be mentioned in your credit report.

Accounts – This section shows all the credit facilities, like credit cards and loans availed by you, and your payment history. The information like your credit limit, account opening, and closing date, etc is mentioned under this section. However, nothing about your savings or investments is ever disclosed in your Equifax credit report.

Hard Inquiries – Whenever you apply for a new credit card or a loan, the card issuer/lender checked your credit score and this is known as a hard inquiry. The number of hard inquiries on your credit profile is also mentioned in your credit report.

How to Improve Your Equifax Credit Score?

Always pay your bills on time as your payment history is the most important factor that is considered while calculating your credit score. Try to pay the full amount due every time rather than paying only the minimum amount every month to avoid unmanageable debt.
Keep your credit utilization ratio low as spending a lot of your credit limit affects your credit score badly. You should try spending only 30% of your credit limit or even less.
Try to maintain a healthy mix of your credit account as having only one type of credit is not a good idea for achieving a good credit score. You can instead have credit cards and different types of loans to get a good Equifax credit score.
Check your Equifax credit information report regularly to keep yourself updated on how your money lenders and card issuers see you.
Don’t apply for new credit cards or loans very often as it can lead to an increased number of hard inquiries.

Bottom Line

If you want to improve your credit score, it is really essential to keep checking your credit reports at regular intervals. Although most financial institutions prefer getting your credit report from CIBIL when you apply for a credit card, Equifax has its own benefits. It also provides you with your portfolio scores and risk scores along with credit reports and scores. Moreover, you can get a free Equifax report once every year. So, make sure to create your account so that you can check your Equifax credit information report for free at regular intervals. Also, do you check your credit reports regularly? Do let us know in the comment section below.