If you were hurt in a motorcycle crash in Hawaii, the size of any settlement turns on a handful of state rules: who was at fault, how badly you were hurt, how much insurance is actually available, and a quirk in Hawaii law that treats riders very differently from drivers of cars. Those rules set the boundaries. Everything below is specific to Hawaii.
Motorcyclists sit outside Hawaii's no-fault system
Hawaii runs a no-fault car insurance system, but motorcycles are carved out of it. The no-fault statute defines a "motor vehicle" as a vehicle required to be registered under chapter 286, "but not including motorcycles and motor scooters."1 Because a motorcycle is not a "motor vehicle" for no-fault purposes, a rider does not automatically collect personal injury protection (PIP) benefits from their own bike policy. The law says so directly: no-fault benefits do not apply to the operator or passenger of a motorcycle or motor scooter hurt in a crash "unless expressly provided for in the motor vehicle policy."2
That exclusion cuts two ways, and both matter to a settlement.
First, the part that helps you. Car occupants in Hawaii cannot sue the at-fault driver for pain and suffering unless they clear a tort threshold: paid or payable PIP benefits reach $5,000, or the injury involves death, a significant permanent loss of use of a body part or function, or permanent serious disfigurement.3 A motorcyclist is generally not held to that threshold, because the threshold is part of the no-fault trade-off and a rider sits outside no-fault. In practice, a hurt rider can usually pursue the at-fault driver directly for the full range of damages, including pain and suffering, without first clearing a dollar or injury bar.
Second, the part that stings. Without PIP, your medical bills are not paid automatically after the crash. They ride on your health insurance, any medical payments coverage you chose to buy, and ultimately the liability claim against the driver who hit you. So the whole medical bill becomes part of what you negotiate for, instead of a first layer the insurer already covered.
What Hawaii does and does not cap
Hawaii does not cap what you can recover in an ordinary vehicle crash. The state has a $375,000 limit on noneconomic (pain and suffering) damages under Haw. Rev. Stat. 663-8.7, but that same statute says the limit "shall not apply to tort actions enumerated in section 663-10.9(2),"4 and that list includes torts relating to motor vehicle accidents.5 So there is no statutory ceiling on pain and suffering in a Hawaii motorcycle case, and no cap on economic damages like medical bills, lost wages, or future care.
Punitive damages are possible in the worst cases. Hawaii allows them where there is clear and convincing evidence the at-fault driver acted wantonly, oppressively, or with conscious indifference to the consequences, the standard the Hawaii Supreme Court set in Masaki v. General Motors Corp.6 A drunk driver who seriously injures a rider is the classic example.
The coverage that actually funds a settlement
A settlement can only be as large as the money available to pay it, and in most crashes that means the at-fault driver's liability policy. Hawaii just raised its minimums. Effective January 1, 2026 under Act 138 (2024), the required limits are 40/80/20: $40,000 per person and $80,000 per accident for bodily injury, and $20,000 for property damage, up from the old 20/40/10.7
Plenty of drivers still carry only the minimum, and a serious motorcycle injury can outrun that coverage fast. This is why uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage matters so much to riders. Hawaii does not force you to buy it, but your insurer must offer UM and UIM coverage up to your bodily injury limits, and you can only turn it down in writing. Once you reject it in writing, the insurer does not have to offer it again at renewal.7 If you did buy it, it can fill the gap when the driver who hit you has too little insurance or none.
How fault changes the number
Hawaii uses modified comparative negligence. Your damages are reduced by your share of fault, and you are barred from recovering only once your negligence is greater than the other side's.8 A rider found 40 percent at fault still collects 60 percent of the damages. A rider found 51 percent at fault collects nothing. Insurers know this, so they push hard to pin part of the blame on the rider.
Helmet use can enter that argument, but Hawaii's rule is narrow. Only operators and passengers under 18 are required to wear a helmet.9 An adult rider who went without one broke no law, though an insurer may still raise it when the injuries are to the head. Hawaii also gives a motorcycle full use of a lane, so lane position can factor into the fault fight.
Evidence that the driver was distracted or impaired pushes the other way. Hawaii bans holding and using a phone while driving, with a $300 fine, or $400 in a school or construction zone, and drivers under 18 cannot use a device at all.10 And if a bar or liquor vendor served a visibly intoxicated patron who then caused the crash, Hawaii recognizes dram shop liability, which can open a second source of recovery.11
Deadlines and the report you will need
You have two years from the date of the crash to file a lawsuit for your injuries, and the same two-year window covers property damage to the bike.12 Miss it and the claim is gone, which is why the deadline shapes leverage: a case with time still on the clock negotiates from strength.
Hawaii has no state highway patrol. The crash report comes from the county police department where the crash happened, Honolulu on Oahu, Hawaii Police on the Big Island, Maui, or Kauai.13 You can read how to request yours on the Hawaii crash reports page. If your motorcycle lost value even after a good repair, that is a separate claim against the at-fault driver, covered on the Hawaii diminished value page.
One clock runs in your favor. If you do carry PIP or medical payments coverage, the insurer must pay or deny your claim in writing within 30 days of reasonable proof of loss, and late payments carry interest at 1.5 percent per month.2
Getting the number right
No page can quote your settlement, because the figure comes out of your specific injuries, the fault split, and the coverage in play. What Hawaii law does is set the edges: no cap on damages, a two-year clock, a comparative-fault reduction, and the fact that as a rider you are usually free to go after the at-fault driver directly. A lawyer who handles motorcycle cases can weigh those pieces against the available policies. You can find one through the legal directory.
This is general information about Hawaii law, not legal advice.
Sources
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 431:10C-103 (definition of "motor vehicle"). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol09_Ch0431-0435H/HRS0431/HRS_0431-0010C-0103.htm
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 431:10C-304 (motorcycle and motor scooter exclusion; 30-day payment deadline and 1.5% monthly interest). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol09_Ch0431-0435H/HRS0431/HRS_0431-0010C-0304.htm
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 431:10C-306 (tort threshold to sue for pain and suffering). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol09_Ch0431-0435H/HRS0431/HRS_0431-0010C-0306.htm
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 663-8.7 ($375,000 noneconomic damages limit and its exclusions). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol13_Ch0601-0676/HRS0663/HRS_0663-0008_0007.htm
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 663-10.9(2) (tort classes excluded from the limit, including motor vehicle accidents). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol13_Ch0601-0676/HRS0663/HRS_0663-0010_0009.htm
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Masaki v. General Motors Corp., 71 Haw. 1, 780 P.2d 566 (1989). https://law.justia.com/cases/hawaii/supreme-court/1989/13023-2.html
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 431:10C-301, as amended by 2024 Act 138 (minimum liability limits; UM/UIM offer and written rejection). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol09_Ch0431-0435H/HRS0431/HRS_0431-0010C-0301.htm
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 663-31 (comparative negligence). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol13_Ch0601-0676/HRS0663/HRS_0663-0031.htm
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 286-81(e) (helmet requirement for riders and passengers under 18). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol06_Ch0261-0319/HRS0286/HRS_0286-0081.htm
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 291C-137 (mobile electronic device ban and fines). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/vol05_ch0261-0319/HRS0291C/HRS_0291C-0137.htm
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Ono v. Applegate, 62 Haw. 131, 612 P.2d 533 (1980) (dram shop liability). https://law.justia.com/cases/hawaii/supreme-court/1980/5975-2.html
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Haw. Rev. Stat. § 657-7 (two-year limitations period for injury and property damage). https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol13_Ch0601-0676/HRS0657/HRS_0657-0007.htm
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Honolulu Police Department, Police Reports. https://www.honolulupd.org/police-reports/