How to check loan debt

How to find out if a person has a loan?

A person can realize that a loan exists in their name without their knowledge through several signs: 

1. Banks refuse to grant loans and installment plans despite a stable official income. 
2. Relatives or acquaintances receive calls from collectors demanding the repayment of a debt. 
3. Receiving a letter with pre-trial demands to pay off the debt from the creditor. 

The first two cases may indicate the presence of debt, but it should be verified. To do this, you should check your credit history; you will likely find a loan debt there that you did not personally take out. 

The most critical situation is when a person learns about the existence of a debt from bailiffs. In this case, their accounts will be blocked, and all debts will be written off from them. The money paid for someone else's loan will have to be recovered through court, which will take a significant amount of time. 

Where is the credit history stored?

Initially, you should find out which credit history bureau (CHB) stores your credit history. You can do this through the Gosuslugi portal by following these instructions: 

1. In the main menu, select "Other".
2. In the "Taxes and Finances" section, select "Information about credit history bureaus".
3. Next, click the start button and check the correctness of the entered data. 
4. If all information is correct, click the "Send Request" button. 

After this, the Bank of Russia generates and sends the information to your personal account. The service will be provided within a day. 

If this method is unavailable for any reason, you can contact the Central Catalog of Credit Histories (CCCH) directly on the Central Bank's website. In this case, the client will need a special credit history subject code. This can be obtained from any credit institution where loans were previously issued. This information should also be contained in loan agreements.  

Online debt check

All citizens should periodically check their credit debt. This can be done in the following ways. 

Request to a CHB

Once you have figured out where your credit history is stored, you can send a request to the CHB. It is convenient to do this on the CHB website or in their office. You can also send requests by regular mail or email. You can request your credit history for free 2 times a year, after which this service becomes paid. 

The credit history will display the following information: 

• number of loans; 
• number of outstanding loans; 
• amount of debt and payment overdue. 

If suspicious entries are found in your credit history that do not correspond to reality, you should contact the bank or microfinance organization (MFO) that issued the loan. 

Contacting the bank 

Some banks provide a credit history check service to their clients. To use this opportunity, simply fill out an application on the bank's website or in its app. 

In most cases, this service is provided for a fee, and its cost depends on the specific credit organization. To check your credit history, you can contact any bank or MFO. The organization will send a request to the CCCH and send back the verification result. 

Check with bailiffs 

This method applies if a court decision has been made regarding the debt. Debt collection is handled by the Federal Bailiff Service. A person should go to its website, go to the "Checks" section, select the required region, and enter their full name. After that, all information about enforcement proceedings opened against you will be displayed.  

How to find out if another person has a debt

It is possible to obtain information about loans issued to another person in several ways. In the first case, it is enough to enter the necessary person's data on the Federal Bailiff Service website. This method of checking debt will be effective when a court decision on debt collection has been made. 

You can also request information from a CHB, but this requires a notarized power of attorney. Without a power of attorney, it will not be possible to obtain this information. 

What to do if someone else's loan was taken out in your name

Do not panic and do not give in to persuasion to pay off the debt. You should explain to the collectors that you did not take out the loan and that a mistake was made. Next, you need to clarify the contract number and date of signing, the name of the bank and the specific branch where the loan agreement was concluded. After that, you should check the information in your credit history. If a supporting entry is found there, it should be printed out. 

If the loan was issued using a lost or stolen passport, you should write a police report about the loss and fraud. It is important to insist on registering the application and keep the receipt with the number. Next, you need to apply for a passport replacement and attach the police report receipt with the number. 

After this, you can contact the banks and microfinance organizations where there is an open loan in your name and demand the cancellation of the contract. Banks often take a direct part in the investigation, provide the police with CCTV footage, and conduct interviews with the employees who drew up the agreement. At this stage, the loan agreement may be closed, and then the bank will conduct its own investigation. 

However, not in all cases does the bank agree with the arguments of the deceived person. Then you should involve a lawyer in solving the issue and prove you are right in court. For this case, various proofs are needed that at the time the loan was issued you were in another place, for example, at work, and this can be confirmed by other employees or CCTV footage. 

The described methods allow you to check loan debts and solve the problem in a timely manner. You should check your credit history at least once a year to have time to react to a fraud situation and avoid long court proceedings in the event of debt collection for someone else's loans by the Federal Bailiff Service.