Willes

This appeal comes before us on remand from the Supreme Court. See Safeco Ins. Co. of Am. v. Burr, — U.S. —, 127 S.Ct. 2201 , 167 L.Ed.2d 1045 (2007). The Court affirmed our holding in Reynolds v. Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., 435 F.3d 1081 (9th Cir.2006), that liability under 15 U.S.C. § 1681n(a) for “willfully failfing] to comply” with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) includes reckless disregard of statutory duties. Burr, 127 S.Ct. at 2208 . The Court also agreed with our holding that quoting or charging a first-time premium can be “an increase in any charge for ... any insurance, existing or applied for.” Id. at 2210 (quoting 15 U.S.C. § 1681a(k)(l)(B)(i)). In addition, the Court held that notice is required only when consideration of a consumer’s credit report is a necessary condition for the increased rate. Id. at 2212 (citing 15 U.S.C. § 1681m(a)). Finally, reversing our holding, the Court held that the baseline for determining whether a first-time rate is a disadvantageous increase is the rate the applicant would have received had the company not taken his credit score into account. Id. at 2213.

The Court held that GEICO was not liable because “the…