AB1833 - Consumer Driving Data Protection Act of 2026.

Amended IN Assembly March 16, 2026 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 1833 Introduced by Assembly Member McKinnor February 11, 2026 An act to amend Section 28200 of the Vehicle add Article 10.5 (commencing with Section 1861.5) to Chapter 9 of Part 2 of Division 1 of the Insurance Code, relating to vehicles. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1833, as amended, McKinnor. Vehicles: access to connected vehicle service. Consumer Driving Data Protection Act of 2026. The Insurance Rate Reduction and Reform Act of 1988, an initiative measure enacted by Proposition 103, as approved by the voters at the November 8, 1988, statewide general election, prohibits specified insurance rates from being approved or remaining in effect that are excessive, inadequate, unfairly discriminatory, or otherwise in violation of the act. Under the act, rates and premiums for automobile insurance are determined based on specified factors, including the insured’s driving safety record. Existing law authorizes the provisions of Proposition 103 to be amended by a statute that furthers the purposes of the act and is enacted by the Legislature with a 2 / 3 vote. This bill, the Consumer Driving Data Protection Act of 2026, would authorize a consumer to opt to use telematics to establish their driving record, thus amending Proposition 103. The bill would prohibit the use of telematics data for a purpose other than rating private passenger automobile insurance. The bill would require a rate application under which telematics would be used to establish an insured’s driving record to include specified materials related to the insurer’s telematics program. This bill would prohibit an insurer that uses telematics from taking specified actions, including conditioning eligibility for a discount upon participation in a telematics program, unless the discount is approved by the commissioner. The bill would also set forth consent and privacy requirements for the collection and use of telematics data. The bill would authorize the commissioner to impose specified penalties for violations of the bill’s provisions, including civil penalties and suspension of an insurer’s telematics program. The bill would declare that its provisions further the purposes of Proposition 103. Existing law requires, beginning on January 1, 2028, for vehicles manufactured on or after January 1, 2028, that have connected vehicle location access, a covered provider, defined as a vehicle manufacturer that provides connected vehicle service, as defined, to provide a mechanism that can be used by a driver who is inside a vehicle to immediately disable connected vehicle location access. For these purposes, “connected vehicle location access” is a type of connected vehicle service that allows a person who is outside of a vehicle to view or track the location of the vehicle, including, but not limited to, a location determined by a Global Positioning System, whether through the internet, an app-based technology, or any other remote wireless connectivity technology. This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to the definition of “connected vehicle location access.” Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY 2/3 Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: NO YES Local Program: NO Bill Text The people of the State of California do enact as follows: SECTION 1. This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the Consumer Driving Data Protection Act of 2026. SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) The Insurance Rate Reduction and Reform Act of 1988, an initiative measure enacted by Proposition 103, as approved by the voters at the November 8, 1988, statewide general election (Proposition 103), established a prior approval system for private passenger automobile insurance rates and specified the following mandatory rating factors in order of importance: (1) Driving safety record. (2) Annual miles driven. (3) Years of driving experience. (4) Those factors that the commissioner may adopt by regulation and that have substantial relation to the risk of loss. (b) Proposition 103’s regulations permit an insurer to use a voluntary verified actual mileage program to offer discounts based on the second mandatory factor. The regulations do not permit using driving behavior or other telematics data as a rating factor. (c) California seeks to modernize its insurance regulatory system by adopting a telematics framework consistent with the protections of Proposition 103. It is the intent of the Legislature to authorize voluntary telematics-based discount programs that (1) do not alter the mandatory rating factor hierarchy established under Section 1861.02 of the Insurance Code and (2) are adopted as a “driving record” under the first mandatory factor and are a voluntary consumer choice alternative to the Department of Motor Vehicles motor vehicle record, which has been the only form of driving information allowable for rating purposes since Proposition 103 passed almost 40 years ago. (d) The purpose of this act is to provide statutory guidance for the voluntary collection, use, analysis, retention, and disclosure of telematics data in private passenger automobile insurance rating, while ensuring actuarial integrity, promoting fairness, preserving regulatory oversight, and safeguarding strong fundamental consumer privacy rights. (e) Motor vehicles increasingly generate large volumes of sensitive driving data, and insurers and third-party telematics providers now possess unprecedented technological capabilities to collect and analyze that data. (f) Ensuring fairness, transparency, and accountability in the use of telematics data is essential to maintaining public trust in the insurance marketplace and preventing the emergence of hidden or unregulated rating factors. (g) Consumers have a fundamental interest in controlling their personal driving data, including the right to know what is collected, how it is used, and with whom it is shared. (h) Strong privacy and data security standards are necessary to protect consumers from unauthorized access, misuse, or commercial exploitation of telematics data by insurers, third-party telematics providers, or other parties. (i) A clear statutory framework governing telematics programs will promote innovation, improve existing safety incentives, and highlight for consumers the connection between the environmental benefits of driving fewer miles with lower automobile insurance premiums, while ensuring that new technologies operate within the consumer protection principles established by California law. SEC. 3. Article 10.5 (commencing with Section 1861.5) is added to Chapter 9 of Part 2 of Division 1 of the Insurance Code, to read: Article 10.5. Telematics and Usage-Based Insurance Programs 1861.5. For purposes of this article: (a) “Consent” means a freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous indication of the consumer’s wishes by which the consumer, or the consumer’s legal guardian, a person who has power of attorney, or a person acting as a conservator for the consumer, including by a statement or by a clear affirmative action, signifies agreement to the processing of telematics data relating to the consumer for a narrowly defined particular purpose. Consent shall be voluntary, informed, affirmative, stand-alone consent provided by the subject consumer before the collection or use of telematics data. (b) “Consumer authorization” means the manner in which consumer consent is obtained and documented. (c) “Scoring model” means a computational, statistical, actuarial, or algorithmic methodology capable of evaluating telematics data, or the inferences derived from those methodologies, to generate a numerical score or predictive assessment used directly or indirectly in rating automobile insurance. (d) “Telematics” means technology that uses vehicle devices, connected devices, mobile applications, embedded systems, or other technological means to collect, transmit, and analyze objectively measurable data for private passenger automobile insurance rating. Telematics shall not include the collection of nondriving-related personal information. (e) “Telematics data” means information electronically collected, transmitted, or derived that reflects the operation, mileage, or use of a motor vehicle, including speed, acceleration, braking, time of operation, and distance traveled. Telematics data does not include nondriving-related personal information. (f) “Telematics program” means a program operated by an insurer or third-party telematics provider that collects, receives, analyzes, or uses telematics data for rating. (g) “Third-party telematics provider” means an entity, including an affiliate of an insurer, that collects, stores, discloses, processes, or analyzes telematics data used in the business of insurance. 1861.51. (a) A consumer may opt to use telematics to establish their driving record for purposes of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 1861.02. Participation in a telematics program shall be strictly voluntary. (b) An insurer that uses telematics shall not do any of the following: (1) Require participation in a telematics program as a condition of obtaining or renewing coverage. (2) Penalize, surcharge, or otherwise adversely underwrite a consumer who declines to participate in a telematics program. (3) Condition eligibility for a discount upon participation in a telematics program, unless the discount is approved by the commissioner. (4) Increase premium in increments of less than six months from the date the policy goes into effect. (c) A consumer may revoke consent for participation in a telematics program at any time. That revocation shall be effective immediately. (d) An insurer that uses telematics shall establish a process by which the consumer may appeal data collected through the telematics program that the consumer believes is incorrect, or appeal the application of a rating factor to the consumer. The commissioner may adopt regulations pertaining to insurer dispute resolution programs. (e) A dispute relating to the collection of telematics data via a mobile device shall be resolved in favor of the consumer. 1861.52. (a) An insurer or third-party telematics provider shall not do any of the following: (1) Collect or use telematics data without obtaining and documenting prior consumer consent in writing. (2) Collect or use telematics data that predates the consumer authorization required by this section, including from a third-party telematics provider. (3) Collect or use telematics data for underwriting, claims, marketing, or any purpose other than rating of private passenger automobile insurance policies pursuant to Sections 660, 661, and 1861.02. (4) Share or disclose telematics data to a person, other than a third-party telematics provider under contract to provide telematics services to the insurer. (5) Sell or obtain valuable consideration in connection with the disclosure of telematics data. (6) Undertake any other prohibited acts specified by the commissioner in regulation. (b) (1) Consumer authorization shall be all of the following: (A) Written in clear, plain language easily understood by the consumer. (B) Free from any feature or characteristic that may confuse a consumer or impair the consumer’s ability to freely express the consumer’s preference. It shall be equally easy for a consumer to opt out of a telematics program as it is to opt in, and ready means shall be provided for a consumer to opt out of a telematics program once the consumer has opted in. (C) Provided to the department with the rate application seeking to apply telematics to establish an insured’s driving record. (2) (A) An insurer shall not disclose to a third party any telematics data that is or may be linked to a consumer, other than is necessary to provide the service. (B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), an insurer may disclose telematics data that identifies a consumer, pursuant to subpoena or other legally enforceable process. An insurer shall provide written notice to the consumer before disclosing personally identifiable information pursuant to this subparagraph. (c) The consumer authorization document shall disclose all of the following, at a minimum: (1) All categories of telematics data to be collected from the consumer. (2) The specific devices, methods, and sources that shall be used to collect telematics data from the consumer. The disclosure shall specifically state if audio or visual recordings of the occupants of the vehicle may be taken as part of the insurer’s telematics program. (3) The specific purpose for which the telematics data will be used. (4) If and how the telematics data will affect premiums. (5) The identity of a third-party telematics provider that may access the consumer’s telematics data. (6) The duration of telematics data retention. (7) The consumer’s right to access the consumer’s telematics data, the process to access the consumer’s telematics data, and the process to request correction of incorrect telematics data. (8) The consumer’s right to revoke authorization at any time. (9) The consumer’s right to appeal the application of rates developed using telematics data or the accuracy of underlying telematics data. (10) Additional disclosures specified by the commissioner in regulation. (d) An insurer shall provide a requesting consumer with access to the consumer’s telematics data and a clear explanation of how the data contributed to a rating determination or any other insurer decision that impacted the consumer and that relied upon or was informed by telematics data. 1861.53. (a) Advertising materials relating to the insurer’s private passenger automobile insurance products shall clearly state that both telematic and traditional insurance products are available to the consumer. (b) When advertising rates or savings, or providing a quote to a consumer, an insurer shall clearly indicate the rates or savings related to participation in the insurer’s telematics program, and shall provide a comparison rate from an equivalent traditional product offered by the insurer. 1861.54. (a) Telematics data shall be used only for rating for private passenger automobile insurance, as described in subdivision (a) of Section 660 and paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 1861.02. (b) The insurer shall obtain prior consumer authorization before the collection or use of telematics data. (c) Telematics data shall qualify as a “driving safety record” and shall not be used as a proxy for anything else. 1861.55. A rate application under which telematics shall be used to establish an insured’s driving record shall be deemed complete only if the insurer submits to the commissioner the following materials related to the insurer’s telematics program: (a) A complete description of the telematics program. (b) All telematics data elements collected. (c) All scoring models, including algorithms, variables, and weighti [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]