To the Honolulu resident whose refrigerator was mistakenly thrown out by the city’s bulky items trash crew: $1,350.

To the woman who slipped and fell on a pile of Kou tree nuts near the baseball fields at Patsy T. Mink Central Oʻahu Regional Park: $18,553.17.

To a man whose suicidal father was shot and killed by police when he was in the middle of a mental health crisis: $20,000. 

The City and County of Honolulu has spent more than $46 million over the last five years settling claims and lawsuits filed against city departments and government workers by injured or otherwise aggrieved residents. Everything from a mistakenly thrown-out garbage can lid to a fatal car crash can cost taxpayers.

The claims cost taxpayers an average of $10.8 million a year between July 2021 and June 2025, according to a Civil Beat analysis of data obtained by the Public First Law Center through a records request. The data is incomplete for the current fiscal year, which ends later this month.

Some of the claims are small: 75 cents in reimbursement for a parking payment that didn’t go through or $31 for a license plate holder by a city employee on a lawnmower. Others — such as a $550,000 payment to the family of an 11-year-old boy who was injured while riding his bike when he was hit by a garbage truck after the driver ran a stop sign — are understandably more significant.

A majority of payouts were for property damage claims. The costliest – by far – are injury claims, often related to police. Lawsuits against the Honolulu Police Department caused the total payments to surge in fiscal year 2024 to more than $12.4 million.

But the bulk of claims are smaller. More than two-thirds of claims were for less than $10,000. The median payout amount was $3,128. 

Policing And Garbage Collection Get Big Claims

Some departments cost taxpayers more than others when it comes to settling claims.

Eight of the 10 highest individual payments were related to the Honolulu Police Department, which made up just 16% of the number of payments but 56% of the total bill.

After HPD, the Department of Environmental Services racked up the highest bill of any single department over the last five years. Many of the claims against it involved sewer problems, car accidents or lawsuits brought by employees. But it was a $3.25 million settlement covering two dozen grievances and lawsuits related to trash collection disputes stretching back to 2012 that put the department over the top. 

Garbage collection has cost the city and county a surprising amount in addition to the settlement to the family of the boy who was struck by a truck. Property damage caused by garbage trucks totaled $57,545, including a $20,000 payment to someone who said a garbage truck hit their car. Another nine people got money after county workers mistakenly disposed of their trash cans. Someone else got $60 when their surfboard was accidentally removed by a crew getting rid of bulky items. 

HPD-related cases accounted for more than three-quarters of the city’s payouts for injuries: $19.9 million. 

Most stem from high-profile police chases, including a 2021 crash in Mākaha that put the driver in a coma for more than a month with a traumatic brain injury, caused serious injuries for the five passengers and resulted in criminal charges for four police officers involved.

The highest payout in the last five years was to the driver of that car, who settled a lawsuit for $12.5 million. Some of that was covered by the city’s insurance carriers, but Honolulu taxpayers still footed the bill for $5.5 million. Other settlements in that case cost the city a total of $8.2 million.

The family of a man killed by a man fleeing police during a chase in Ala Moana also received more than $2.9 million from the city. The city’s insurance covered the rest of the $10 million settlement. 

Payouts related to HPD also included 12 people who allege they were wrongfully arrested or maliciously prosecuted, costing the city $5.2 million. One man, Sefo Fatasi, settled a lawsuit against the city and several police officers for $2.1 million after he spent nearly three years in jail awaiting trial for drug charges that were ultimately dismissed by the court. The city covered $1.7 million, while its insurance paid the rest.

Property Damage, Personal Injuries

Injuries not related to HPD cost Honolulu $5.5 million.

A crosswalk that was removed cost the city $460,000 after three people were struck while crossing Kapiʻolani Boulevard at Pā‘ani Street.

The city is still paying off a $257,679 settlement from a 1977 personal injury case where someone broke their neck at Sandy Beach. The settlement — which the city started making annual payments on in 1997 — is expected to be paid in full this year.

Property damage caused by everything from potholes to a garbage truck that hit a parked car cost Honolulu taxpayers more than $3 million between July 2021 and April 2026. A 2018 storm resulted in $1.7 million in payouts to Honolulu residents.

The median payout for the 245 property damage claims was $1,600. Some of the damage was minor, like the resident who got $500 after their party supplies, chairs and a tent that were damaged by sprinklers at Pālailai Neighborhood Park. At least 29 people have gotten payouts because their cars were damaged by debris kicked up by weedwackers wielded by county workers. 

One homeowner got about $109,424 when a road in Tantalus collapsed in December 2021, damaging their house and property. Another received $90,000 after her property in Pearl City was damaged because of improperly constructed and maintained drainage systems. 

Still, by far the most common claims related to property damage are caused by trees, to the tune of more than $346,000 over five years. 

“Data Dive” is supported in part by the Will J. Reid Foundation.