(a)  Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (c), an investigative consumer reporting agency may charge a consumer a fee not exceeding eight dollars ($8) for making disclosures to the consumer pursuant to Sections 1786.10, 1786.11, and 1786.22. Any charges shall be indicated to the consumer prior to disclosure.

(b)  An investigative consumer reporting agency shall not impose any charge for providing notice to a consumer required under Section 1786.24, furnishing an investigative consumer report pursuant to Section 1786.24, or notifying a person pursuant to subdivision (k) of Section 1786.24 of the deletion of information that is found to be inaccurate or that cannot be verified.

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Terms Used In California Civil Code 1786.26

  • consumer: means a natural individual who has made application to a person for employment purposes, for insurance for personal, family, or household purposes, or the hiring of a dwelling unit, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 1940. See California Civil Code 1786.2
  • file: when used in connection with information on any consumer, means all of the information on that consumer recorded and retained by an investigative consumer reporting agency regardless of how the information is stored. See California Civil Code 1786.2
  • Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
  • investigative consumer report: means a consumer report in which information on a consumer's character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or mode of living is obtained through any means. See California Civil Code 1786.2
  • investigative consumer reporting agency: means any person who, for monetary fees or dues, engages in whole or in part in the practice of collecting, assembling, evaluating, compiling, reporting, transmitting, transferring, or communicating information concerning consumers for the purposes of furnishing investigative consumer reports to third parties, but does not include any governmental agency whose records are maintained primarily for traffic safety, law enforcement, or licensing purposes, or any licensed insurance agent, insurance broker, or solicitor, insurer, or life insurance agent. See California Civil Code 1786.2
  • person: as used in this title shall not be construed to require duplicative reporting by any individual, corporation, trust, estate, cooperative, association, government, or governmental subdivision or agency, or other entity involved in the same transaction. See California Civil Code 1786.2

(c)  Upon the request of the consumer, an investigative consumer reporting agency shall make all disclosures pursuant to Section 1786.10 and 1786.22 once during any 12-month period without charge to that consumer if the consumer certifies in writing that he or she (1) is unemployed and intends to apply for employment in the 60-day period beginning on the date the certification is made, (2) is a recipient of public welfare assistance, or (3) has reason to believe that the file on the consumer at the investigative consumer reporting agency contains inaccurate information due to fraud.

(d)  An investigative consumer reporting agency shall not impose any charge on a consumer for providing any notification or making any disclosure required by this title, except as authorized by this section.

(Amended by Stats. 2001, Ch. 354, Sec. 14. Effective January 1, 2002.)