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Hawaii car seat laws

Haw. Rev. Stat. § 291-11.5 · Last checked September 23, 2026

Car seat stages

The statute text comes first. Numbers are a summary for comparison, not a replacement for the law.

Rear-facing seat

Statute text

If the child is under two years of age, the person operating the motor vehicle shall ensure that the child is properly restrained in a rear-facing child passenger restraint system with harness that meets federal motor vehicle safety standards at the time of its manufacture.

§ 291-11.5(a)(1).

What the law sets

Rear-facing seat required by law
Yes
Rear-facing until age
2 years
Rear-facing until weight
Not addressed in statute

Not set in § 291-11.5(a); the stages run on age.

Rear-facing until height
Not addressed in statute

Not set in § 291-11.5(a)(1).

Leaving rear-facing
Meeting any one listed limit is enough

Age is the only limit: rear-facing is required until the second birthday.

Recommended (not law)

NHTSA

Children under age 1 should always ride in a rear-facing car seat. Keep your child rear-facing as long as possible — it's the best way to keep them safe — until they reach the top height or weight limit allowed by the car seat's manufacturer.

NHTSA – Car Seats and Booster Seats

AAP

All infants should ride rear-facing, starting with their first ride home from the hospital, and should continue riding rear-facing as long as possible until they reach the highest weight or height allowed by their car safety seat's manufacturer.

HealthyChildren.org (AAP) – Car Safety Seats: Information for Families

Forward-facing harness seat

Statute text

If the child is two years of age or older, but less than four years of age, the person operating the motor vehicle shall ensure that the child is properly restrained in a rear-facing or forward-facing child passenger restraint system with harness that meets federal motor vehicle safety standards at the time of its manufacture.

§ 291-11.5(a)(2).

What the law sets

Forward-facing harness required by law
Yes

A harness seat is required from two to three; it may face rear or forward.

Harness until age
4 years
Harness until weight
Not addressed in statute

Not set in § 291-11.5(a)(2).

Harness until height
Not addressed in statute

Not set in § 291-11.5(a)(2).

Leaving the harness
Meeting any one listed limit is enough

Age is the only limit: the harness stage ends at the fourth birthday.

Recommended (not law)

NHTSA

Once a child outgrows the rear-facing car seat, they are ready for a forward-facing car seat with a harness and tether. Keep the child in the forward-facing seat until they reach the top height or weight limit allowed by the car seat's manufacturer, then move to a booster seat, still in the back seat.

NHTSA – Car Seats and Booster Seats

AAP

Children should use a forward-facing car seat with a harness after outgrowing the rear-facing weight or height limit. It is best for children to ride in a seat with a harness as long as possible, at least to 4 years of age.

HealthyChildren.org (AAP) – Car Safety Seats: Information for Families

Booster seat

Statute text

If the child is four years of age or older but less than ten years of age, the person operating the motor vehicle shall ensure that the child is properly restrained in a child passenger restraint system with harness or booster seat that meets federal motor vehicle safety standards at the time of its manufacture; except as provided in paragraph (4). If the child is seven years of age or older but less than ten years of age, the person operating the motor vehicle shall be exempt from restraining the child in a child passenger restraint system with harness or booster seat ... if the child is correctly restrained by a lap and shoulder seat belt assembly; provided that the child is over four feet and nine inches in height.

§ 291-11.5(a)(3) and (a)(4).

What the law sets

Booster required by law
Yes

A harness seat or a booster seat satisfies § 291-11.5(a)(3).

Booster until age
10 years
Booster until weight
Not addressed in statute

Not set in § 291-11.5(a)(3).

Booster until height
57 in (4 ft 9 in)

The height release in § 291-11.5(a)(4) needs the child to be over 4 feet 9 inches, so exactly 57 inches is not enough, and it applies only from age seven.

Leaving the booster
A combination of conditions (see statute text)

A child leaves the seat at ten, or from seven if the child is over 4 feet 9 inches and correctly belted; height alone does not release a child under seven.

Leaving the booster — conditions
age>=10yr OR (age>=7yr AND height>57in)

Recommended (not law)

NHTSA

Keep your child in a booster seat until they are big enough to fit in a seat belt properly — the lap belt lying snugly across the upper thighs (not the stomach) and the shoulder belt snug across the shoulder and chest (not the neck or face).

NHTSA – Car Seats and Booster Seats

AAP

All children whose weight or height exceeds the forward-facing limit for their car safety seat should use a belt-positioning booster seat until the vehicle seat belt fits properly, typically when they have reached 4 feet 9 inches in height and are 8 to 12 years of age.

HealthyChildren.org (AAP) – Car Safety Seats: Information for Families

Seat belt

Statute text

Except as otherwise provided by law, no person shall operate a motor vehicle upon any public highway unless the person is restrained by a seat belt assembly and all passengers in the front or back seat of the motor vehicle are restrained by a seat belt assembly or are restrained pursuant to section 291-11.5 if they are under ten years of age.

§ 291-11.6(a). A child of seven, eight or nine may use the belt alone only if over 4 feet 9 inches (§ 291-11.5(a)(4)).

What the law sets

Seat belt alone from age
7 years

From seven the belt alone is allowed, but only for a child over 4 feet 9 inches; every child is on the belt at ten.

Seat belt alone from height
57 in (4 ft 9 in)

Over 4 feet 9 inches, per § 291-11.5(a)(4).

Moving to the seat belt
A combination of conditions (see statute text)

The belt alone is allowed at ten, or from seven when the child is over 4 feet 9 inches; there is no field for that pairing, so the condition is written out.

Moving to the seat belt — conditions
age>=10yr OR (age>=7yr AND height>57in)

Recommended (not law)

NHTSA

Once a child is big enough to fit in a seat belt properly, they can ride with just the lap-and-shoulder belt, but should still ride in the back seat — NHTSA recommends keeping children in the back seat at least through age 12.

NHTSA – Car Seats and Booster Seats

AAP

Children should transition to the vehicle seat belt once it fits properly, typically at about 4 feet 9 inches in height and 8 to 12 years of age; all children younger than 13 years should ride in the back seat.

HealthyChildren.org (AAP) – Car Safety Seats: Information for Families

Front seat

Many states have no front-seat age in statute. Where that is the case, we say so and cite the section we read.

Front seat — statute text
Not addressed in statute

No front-seat provision in § 291-11.5; the section sets no seating position and no air bag rule, and § 291-11.6(a) covers front and back seat passengers alike.

Minimum age for the front seat
Not addressed in statute

No front-seat provision in § 291-11.5.

Conditions
Not addressed in statute

No front-seat provision in § 291-11.5.

Penalties

What a car seat ticket costs, and whether showing proof of a proper seat can cancel it.

First offense — fine
Up to $100

§ 291-11.5(c)(1): a first conviction carries a fine of not more than $100, a mandatory child passenger restraint safety class, a $50 driver education assessment and a $10 neurotrauma surcharge (plus up to $10 for the trauma system fund if ordered).

Repeat offense — fine
$250 – $500

§ 291-11.5(c)(2): a second conviction within three years carries $250 to $500. A third or later conviction within three years carries $500 to $800 (§ 291-11.5(c)(3)).

License points
None

Not set in § 291-11.5. The section's penalties are fines, a safety class and assessments, and it names no license points. Hawaii has no license point system: HRS chapter 286 suspends or revokes a license only on the examiner's findings (§ 286-119) or on conviction (§§ 286-124, 286-125), and the chapter's section list contains no point schedule.

Fine waiver
Not addressed in statute

Not set in § 291-11.5; there is no waiver of the fine on proof of buying a restraint, and the safety class under § 291-11.5(c)(1)(B) is required in addition to the fine.

Exemptions

Exempt means the statute excludes it. Silent means the statute does not address it.

Taxis
Exempt

§ 291-11.5(b) exempts operators of commercial vehicles, and § 291-11.5(d) defines a commercial vehicle as any motor vehicle used for the transportation of persons for hire, compensation or profit.

Rideshare (Uber, Lyft)
Not addressed in statute

§ 291-11.5 does not name transportation network companies or their drivers, though § 291-11.5(b) and (d) exempt vehicles used to carry persons for hire, compensation or profit.

Buses
Exempt

§ 291-11.5(b) exempts operators of mass transit vehicles, defined in § 291-11.6(f) as a bus, including a school bus, over 10,000 pounds that serves the general public (a charter or sightseeing bus is excluded).

Medical exemption
Not addressed in statute

§ 291-11.5 has no medical exemption; the physician's certification in § 291-11.6(c)(3) applies to the seat belt requirement, not to child restraints.

Out-of-state vehicles
Not addressed in statute

§ 291-11.5 does not address nonresident drivers or out-of-state vehicles.

How Hawaii compares

Hawaii is not ranked on booster age because its law combines several conditions that a single age cannot represent.

Hawaii shares no land border with another state, so no neighbor comparison applies.

Law compared with the AAP recommendation

  • Hawaii law: a rear-facing seat is required until the child reaches age 2. AAP recommends: All infants should ride rear-facing, starting with their first ride home from the hospital, and should continue riding rear-facing as long as possible until they reach the highest weight or height allowed by their car safety seat's manufacturer.
  • Hawaii law: a forward-facing harness seat is required until the child reaches age 4. AAP recommends: Children should use a forward-facing car seat with a harness after outgrowing the rear-facing weight or height limit. It is best for children to ride in a seat with a harness as long as possible, at least to 4 years of age.
  • Hawaii law: a booster seat is required until this condition is met: age ≥ 10 yr or (age ≥ 7 yr and height > 57 in). AAP recommends: All children whose weight or height exceeds the forward-facing limit for their car safety seat should use a belt-positioning booster seat until the vehicle seat belt fits properly, typically when they have reached 4 feet 9 inches in height and are 8 to 12 years of age.
  • Hawaii law: a child may use the seat belt alone once this condition is met: age ≥ 10 yr or (age ≥ 7 yr and height > 57 in). AAP recommends: Children should transition to the vehicle seat belt once it fits properly, typically at about 4 feet 9 inches in height and 8 to 12 years of age; all children younger than 13 years should ride in the back seat.

See every state side by side on the comparison pages.

Guides covering Hawaii

Sources

State law comes from the statute or state agency below. Recommendations come from NHTSA and the American Academy of Pediatrics. The responsible agency is Hawaii Department of Transportation.

State law

Recommendations

Disclaimer

This page summarizes Hawaii law for reference. It is not legal or medical advice. The statute text is the law; the numbers are our summary of it. Legal minimums are not safety recommendations: NHTSA and the AAP recommend keeping a child in each stage for as long as the seat allows. Check the statute or Hawaii Department of Transportation before relying on anything here.