Have you always paid all your EMIs without defaulting? Or have you defaulted on your dues on a number of occasions? Is there any way by which you can get to know your credit rating?

Who makes your credit reports? By when will you be able to get your credit rating in India?

 In a chat with Get Ahead readers on July 17, personal finance expert Harsh Roongta answered these and several other queries related to credit card debt and personal loans.

For those of you who missed the chat, here is the transcript.

Part I: Are you in a debt trap? Here's help

shekh asked, Hi Harsh, does it make sense to buy an LCD TV (or any other expensive gadget for example) on EMI even if I can afford to pay for it fully?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, No.

Arun asked, My take home is Rs 30k and my wife's take home is Rs 15k. I want to apply for a loan. What will be my eligibility?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, Presuming you are talking of a personal loan and that you currently have no other liabilities you should be eligible for a loan of around Rs 3 -4 lakhs for 3 years.

psreddy asked, Hi Harsh ,recently I had applied for a personal loan at a Citi Bank and the same has been aprroved for Rs 2.16 lakhs @19 per cent reducing balance for a tenure of 48 months. I had signed the agreements on July 2 and given PDC's also, while signing the agreement they said , I will get a DD within 2 days, till now I have not received it. Now what action I should take because my PDC and agreement is with them and there is no response from Citi Bank on my loan.

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, File an official complaint on their website and if your issue is not resolved in the next few days you can compalin to the banking ombudsman (details on www.rbi.org.in).

ABHIJEET asked, Dear Sir, can the prepayment penalty on a personal loan be waived off if I do an early repayment?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, Very unlikely.

manoj asked, Sir can I get a credit card with a credit limit of Rs 20,000 only? Why I am asking is because I don't believe in using credit crads. But as a frequent flight traveller, I am in need of a credit card. So can you suggest a credit card with this amount?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, There are some banks which allow you to cap the credit limit as per your wishes. Whilst other banks may also have the same facility from memory the name that comes to mind is ABN Amro Bank Credit Card for this purpose.

julie asked, Please let me know which one is better if we do the shopping with debit card or credit card. Nowadays credit cards are putting so many charges even if you don't use them for years. I don't see any person in my life who is happy with this crdeit cards.

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, That obviously is not true. There are 22 million credit cards in India and they are growing at 30 per cent every year. This simply would not have been possible if what you are saying is correct. However if you are more comfortable using a debit card by all means you should do so. But credit cards are still very important means of payment and with a little bit of care the consumer can benefit tremendously by using the credit card responsibly.

jacob asked, How safe is a credit card in the present day?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, With a few precautions credit cards can be pretty safe and convenient to use. Read this link for some safety tips. http://www.apnaloan.com/primers/credit-card-india/safetyfeatures.html.

kaushik asked, Can I get a loan against my LIC [Get Quote] policies? If yes, how much as I have (1) money back policy for Rs 1 lakh. (2) Pension Scheme policy (3) Another policy for Rs 50,000?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, Your best bet is to take the loan from your insurance company itself. Normally the loan will be availbel for 80-90 per cent of the surrender value of the policy.

ganpath asked, Hi Harsh, I am getting frequent phone calls from my credit card bank regarding personal loan. Even if I am not interested they are tyring to convince me. Anyway to avoid this?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, You can always put your number on that bank's do not call list by using the necessary link on their website.

Shivaprabhu asked, Sir, would you like to say something about the recent credit card frauds? Do Indian credit card customers are safeguarded against these kind of frauds? How safe is our credit cards? I am having 3 banks' CC and cancelled one and planning to cancel other two. Please answer.

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, I presume you are referring to the recent news item on credit card reader which can scan your credit card and duplicate it. The biggest safety feature that is still not operational is a PIN code based system where you will need to also authorise every payment through a PIN code.

a12345 asked, Harsh, I was having a payment due for last 3 years on my ICICI [Get Quote] credit card but ultimately two months back I have paid the complete settlement amount and I have got the receipt of that also along with the settlement letter but I have not got the 'No Due' certificate. What should I do?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, Presumably the settlement letter is the 'No Due' letter.

ragghvi asked, How does one know one's credit rating? I believe in developed countries there is a way of knowing it by paying a small fee.

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, Excellent question. As per the Credit Information Companies Regulation Act you are entitled to a copy of your own credit report from every regsitered credit bureau. RBI has notified on July 31, 2007 as the last date for credit bureaus in India to make applications for registration. Once the credit bureaus are registered this right will kick in automatically.

ashu asked, Hello sir....my question is if I pay all the amount due on my credit card which is approximately Rs 3 lakh as per the settlement reached can the bank still send my name to defaulter's list or to a credit bureau even if I have the 'No Due' letter from them?

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com answers, Yes they can. The credit bureau records whether you paid the dues on time as well as whether you paid all the dues or the bank had to settle for a part of the dues. The no dues letter is still helpful because when you are trying to rebuild your credit profile this letter comes in useful.

Harsh Roongta CEO apnaloan.com says, Ok folks, it was a real pleasure talking to all of you today. Please go through the transcript where most of your questions have been answered. 

Part I: Are you in a debt trap? Here's help

Harsh Roongta is the CEO of apnaloan.com, an online guide for retail loan seekers. Apnaloan also enables loan consumers get best rates by making banks compete for their loan.