Quick answer. File at scores.sebi.gov.in - the regulator's free investor grievance portal. Pick the right entity (broker, mutual fund, RTA, depository, listed company). The intermediary has 21 calendar days to resolve. If you are not satisfied, click “Review” within 15 days - SEBI takes the file. Still no fix? Escalate online to Smart ODR for binding conciliation, mediation, and arbitration. Cost stays at zero for most retail disputes. Investor Protection Fund (NSE / BSE) covers broker defaults. Direct petition to SAT for SEBI's own orders.
If you are short on time, jump to How to file on SCORES and the sample complaint text block.
This page sits inside the middle-class scam defence pillar because securities mis-selling - F&O tips on Telegram, churned mutual fund portfolios, “IPO allotment guaranteed” calls - is now the second largest category of household financial loss in India after cyber fraud. The portals are there, they are free, and most retail investors never use them.
A 34-year old IT consultant in Bengaluru opened a discount-broker account in 2024, transferred Rs 4 lakh, and started trading index options on his phone. By March 2025 his account showed Rs 1.8 lakh in unauthorised trades placed from an unfamiliar IP. The broker's RM told him “you must have shared OTP”. He had not. He filed on SCORES on day 4, attached his trade book and IP logs, and pasted SEBI Circular SEBI/HO/MIRSD/MIRSD-PoD-1/P/CIR/2023/72 (the order-record retention rule). The broker's compliance head called back on day 18. Refund credited day 21. No ODR needed.
Three things made that recovery work.
If the broker had stalled past day 21 he would have clicked Review. If SEBI's first response had been an “issue closed” template, he would have moved the matter to Smart ODR and asked for conciliation. Arbitration sits at the end of that ladder, with an award that is enforceable like a civil-court decree under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996.
The point of this page is to give the same map to anyone reading it tonight.
SCORES stands for SEBI Complaints Redress System. It is run by the Securities and Exchange Board of India under section 11 of the SEBI Act 1992 and is the only mandatory grievance route for every SEBI-registered intermediary. Brokers, mutual funds and their AMCs, depositories (NSDL, CDSL), depository participants, RTAs (Registrars and Transfer Agents like KFin, CAMS, Linkintime), portfolio managers, investment advisers, research analysts, and even listed companies for shareholder grievances - all sit on it.
The current version, SCORES 2.0, went live in April 2024 under SEBI Circular dated 4 August 2023. The big changes were:
Smart ODR stands for Smart Online Dispute Resolution. It went live on 17 August 2023 under SEBI Master Circular SEBI/HO/OIAE/OIAE_IAD-1/P/CIR/2023/131. The platform sits at smartodr.in and is operated jointly by SEBI-approved Online Dispute Resolution Institutions empanelled with the stock exchanges and depositories.
It has four steps - conciliation, mediation, arbitration, and a thin “review” layer between conciliation and mediation. The award at the end of arbitration is binding on both sides and enforceable as a civil court decree. For most retail disputes under Rs 30 lakh the fees are heavily subsidised by the exchanges' Investor Protection Funds.
If you remember just two URLs from this page, remember these:
The list is wide. Both platforms accept complaints against any SEBI-registered intermediary. Common categories:
Disputes outside the SEBI net stay outside. Tax queries go to the CBDT. Bank-channel mis-selling goes to the Banking Ombudsman. Pure insurance mis-selling goes to IRDAI Bima Bharosa. A “trading app” that is not SEBI-registered (most binary trading and forex apps) is a cyber fraud matter - file on the 1930 helpline and cybercrime.gov.in.
SCORES 2.0 puts a 21-calendar-day Service Level Agreement on every intermediary. The clock starts when SCORES auto-forwards your complaint - usually the next working day after you file. Three things happen on the dashboard.
Miss the 15-day review window and the complaint is auto-closed. You can refile, but the regulator counts a delay against you. Set a phone calendar reminder when you file, then again on day 21, day 28 and day 35.
You will need:
SEBI requires a prior written complaint to the intermediary. Email is enough. Save the date stamp and the auto-reply ticket number. Wait 30 days for their reply (mutual fund / AMC), or 15 days for a broker / depository under exchange bye-laws. Only then does SCORES accept the file. SCORES will ask “Have you approached the entity?” with a Y / N radio button. Y is required.
If the intermediary asks you to drop the complaint in exchange for a partial credit, get that in writing and only close the file after the money credits to your account.
Go to scores.sebi.gov.in. Click “Sign Up”. Enter PAN, mobile, email. An OTP arrives on each. After verification you are inside the dashboard.
Pick Complaint Category from the dropdown - “Stockbroker”, “Mutual Fund”, “Depository Participant”, “RTA”, etc. The form auto-loads the right sub-category set. Select the entity name from the SEBI master list (start typing - it auto-suggests). If the entity is not on the list, the entity is not SEBI-registered and SCORES is the wrong route.
Use 500 to 1,500 words. Stay factual. Open with the entity, your client code, the disputed amount, and the date. State the SEBI regulation you believe is breached. Close with the relief you want - “refund of Rs X” / “reversal of trade T” / “credit of dividend Y” / “compensation for loss caused by the breach”.
One PDF, indexed. Pages 1 to 3: the disputed contract note or statement, highlighted. Pages 4 to 6: the email you sent the entity and their reply (or the auto-reply ticket). Pages 7 onwards: regulator citations - the SEBI circular or AMFI guideline you are invoking. Total under 5 MB.
You get a 15-digit complaint number of the form YYYY-MM-DD-XXXXXX. Save it. Every escalation, review, and arbitration claim runs off this number.
The dashboard shows the auto-forwarded date, the entity's ATR (when uploaded), and a “Are you satisfied?” choice on day 21. Click “No” if you are not - clicking “Yes” by mistake closes the file.
You can move to Smart ODR in three situations.
Go to smartodr.in. Click “File a Complaint”.
The fees stay subsidised because the Investor Protection Funds of the exchanges and depositories carry most of the conciliator and arbitrator costs.
Save everything in one zipped folder before you start. SCORES and Smart ODR each ask for a consolidated PDF.
This is the route most investors never hear about. If your broker is declared a defaulter or expelled by the exchange - which happened to Karvy Stock Broking in 2020 and to several smaller members in 2023 to 2025 - you can claim from the exchange's Investor Protection Fund (IPF).
The maximum payout per investor per defaulter is Rs 25 lakh for NSE (revised 2023) and Rs 25 lakh for BSE. To claim:
If your broker is operational but slow to refund, IPF does not apply. Stay on SCORES and Smart ODR.
The Securities Appellate Tribunal at sat.gov.in is the statutory appeal forum against any order of SEBI itself, the IRDAI, and the PFRDA. You go to SAT when:
The appeal must be filed within 45 days of receipt of the SEBI order, under section 15T of the SEBI Act 1992. SAT sits at Mumbai with circuit benches. You can appear in person or through counsel. From SAT, the only further appeal is to the Supreme Court on a question of law under section 15Z.
For a pure investor-vs-intermediary refund matter, SAT is not the route. Stay with SCORES then Smart ODR.
Paste this in the narrative box on SCORES after you change the bracketed parts. Keep under 1,500 words.
To, The Investor Grievance Cell, Securities and Exchange Board of India, through SCORES portal. Subject: Complaint against [ENTITY NAME], SEBI Reg. No. [INZ/INH/INF/IN-XXX], regarding [UNAUTHORISED TRADE / REDEMPTION DELAY / IPO ALLOTMENT DISPUTE]. 1. Complainant: [Full name], PAN [XXXXX0000X], client code / folio [XXXXXX], demat / DP-ID [XXXX-XXXXXX], registered mobile and email on file with the entity. 2. Disputed transaction details. a. Date / time: [DD-MM-YYYY, HH:MM IST]. b. Scrip / Scheme: [TICKER / SCHEME NAME]. c. Quantity / Units: [Number]. d. Disputed amount: Rs [Amount]. e. Order / folio reference: [Order ID / Folio No.]. 3. Facts. On [date] I [received / placed / did NOT place] the above transaction. The entity [executed / failed to execute / reversed / debited] the same on [date]. I noticed the discrepancy on [date] and informed the entity by email dated [date] (auto-reply ticket [Ticket No.]). The entity replied on [date] stating [summary] which I do not accept because [one or two lines]. 4. Provisions breached. - Regulation [X] of [SEBI (Stockbrokers) Regulations 1992 / SEBI (Mutual Funds) Regulations 1996 / SEBI (Depositories and Participants) Regulations 2018]. - SEBI Circular [Number and Date] read with the Master Circular for [Brokers / MFs / Depositories] dated [date]. - Clause [X] of the Rights and Obligations document signed at account opening. 5. Relief sought. - Refund / reversal of Rs [Amount] with interest at the SEBI-prescribed rate. - Cancellation of the unauthorised trade and reversal of the consequential debits. - Compensation for loss of opportunity / interest from [date] to date of credit. - Any other relief the Hon'ble Regulator deems fit. 6. Prior complaint. Complaint email dated [date], entity ticket no. [XXX]. 21 days have elapsed without satisfactory resolution. 7. Declaration. The facts above are true to the best of my knowledge. I have not approached any court for the same cause of action. I am willing to escalate to Smart ODR if the matter is not resolved within the SCORES SLA. [Name] [Date] [Place]
Three lines never to drop - the SEBI Reg. No. of the entity, the exact regulation breached, and the prior complaint date. They turn a “general grievance” into a regulatory complaint.
Facts. Discount broker, Bengaluru investor, Rs 1.8 lakh in unauthorised Nifty option trades on a single afternoon. Investor had not traded options for the preceding 6 months. Email to the broker on day 4. Filed SCORES complaint on day 6 citing Clause A.4 of the SEBI Master Circular for Stockbrokers on order confirmation and IP logging. Broker's ATR on day 18 acknowledged “unauthorised access” and credited the full Rs 1.8 lakh plus Rs 4,200 interest. Total time 21 days. Smart ODR not needed.
Facts. Retired teacher, Pune, Rs 10,000 monthly SIP enrolled by a bank RM into a 3-year closed-ended hybrid fund disguised as an open-ended diversified equity scheme. Investor wanted to redeem after 14 months. AMC refused. SCORES complaint cited AMFI distributor code breach and mis-disclosure of liquidity terms. ATR on day 24 - the AMC offered redemption at then-NAV. Investor moved to Smart ODR because the AMC refused to refund the exit load they had charged. Conciliator brokered settlement on day 18 of ODR - exit load refunded, plus Rs 2,500 inconvenience cost. Total time 65 days. Net recovery Rs 47,000.
Facts. Retail bidder for a 2024 mainboard IPO, Rs 1.5 lakh blocked through ASBA. Allotment day - zero allotment. Refund (un-blocking) should hit T+3. Bank still showed lien on day 8. SCORES complaint filed against the RTA, copy to the bank's banking ombudsman, citing SEBI Circular on ASBA blocking and unblocking timelines. RTA's ATR on day 7 - lien released the same day, plus Rs 540 interest at the SEBI-prescribed rate per delay day. Total time 15 days.
The pattern is the same in each case - speed, named regulation, escalation discipline. Investors who wait six months before filing lose evidence and lose the SCORES timeline benefit.
SEBI is a public authority under the RTI Act 2005. Stock exchanges are not “public authorities” by default but they are information custodians for many compliance records. Three RTI moves work well alongside a SCORES complaint.
You can pre-fill the RTI in 60 seconds using the free AI RTI Drafter - it inserts the §6, §7(1), §19(1) clauses and the BKC postal address automatically.
For broader recovery patterns also see the citizen RTI playbook and the case database pillar of CIC and court rulings on banking and securities.
Yes. Filing on SCORES is free for every investor. There is no government fee, no SEBI fee, no intermediary fee. Smart ODR has a nominal filing fee of Rs 100 to Rs 1,000 depending on the disputed amount, and even that is refunded to the winning side in the final award. The Investor Protection Funds of the exchanges and depositories underwrite the conciliator and arbitrator costs for retail disputes.
SCORES is the regulator's grievance desk - a tracker that forces the intermediary to respond within 21 days. The outcome is a refund or a resolution but nothing binding beyond regulatory pressure. Smart ODR is a dispute resolution platform - conciliation, mediation, and finally arbitration. The arbitral award at the end of Smart ODR is binding on both sides and enforceable as a civil court decree under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996.
Yes. Every SEBI-registered broker - discount, full-service, online, app-only - is on SCORES. Pick “Stockbroker” as the category and search for the broker by its registered name (not the app brand). Zerodha is Zerodha Broking Limited, Groww is Groww Invest Tech Private Limited (Nextbillion Technology Private Limited), Upstox is RKSV Securities India Private Limited, Angel One is Angel One Limited. Confirm the SEBI Reg. No. on the broker's contract note footer.
For investor-vs-SEBI-registered-intermediary disputes that arise out of the contractual relationship (broker agreement, mutual fund subscription, depository agreement) the Master Circular dated 31 July 2023 makes SCORES and then Smart ODR the mandatory first forum. You can move to civil court or consumer commission after the ODR route, but the court will look at the ODR record. Pure cyber-fraud matters and tortious claims sit outside that mandate.
In the best case 21 days - the broker resolves at SCORES Stage 1. In the median case 60 to 90 days through SCORES Review and ODR conciliation. In the upper case 5 to 6 months through full ODR arbitration. Compare with 18 to 36 months for a fresh consumer commission case and 3 to 5 years for a civil court suit.
Two routes activate. (1) If the exchange declares the broker a defaulter or expelled member, you claim from the exchange's Investor Protection Fund - currently up to Rs 25 lakh per investor per defaulter for NSE and BSE. (2) Outside that, you become an unsecured creditor in the broker's insolvency under the IBC 2016. The IPF route is far faster. Watch the exchange's “Member Declaration” notices and file the IPF claim within 150 days.
Yes. The platform accepts overseas mobile numbers and email IDs. NRO / NRE demat accounts and Portfolio Investment Scheme accounts are all SCORES-eligible. For NRI-specific issues like repatriation delay you may also need to cite the FEMA Master Direction on Investment by NRIs and OCIs in addition to the SEBI regulations.
No. SCORES requires PAN, mobile, and email. SEBI uses these to verify you are the actual aggrieved investor. If you are reporting a suspected fraud (not your own grievance) use the SEBI Informant Mechanism under the SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations 2015 instead. That route is anonymous-by-design.
That is exactly when the Review and Second Review buttons are designed to fire. Click Review on day 22 if there is no ATR. Click Second Review 15 days later if the designated body has not closed the loop. SEBI then takes the file directly and can impose monetary penalty up to Rs 1 crore per default on the intermediary under section 15HB of the SEBI Act 1992.
Not mandatory. Most retail Smart ODR arbitrations run on documents and one or two video calls. The arbitrator is a SEBI-empanelled professional. You can present in person. A lawyer helps if the disputed amount is above Rs 10 lakh or the matter turns on a technical point of mutual fund regulation, but is not required.
Calendar days. SEBI Circular dated 4 August 2023 specifies 21 calendar days. Weekends and holidays count. This is a tighter clock than most banking ombudsman timelines and much tighter than civil court schedules.
Yes. There is a “Withdraw” option in the dashboard. Use it only after the refund has actually credited to your bank account. Withdrawal closes the file permanently - if the intermediary backtracks, you have to refile from scratch and you lose the original timeline benefit.
Last reviewed by RTI Wiki editorial team, May 2026.