RR
Rent Regulations

Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521 § 521-33

Landlord's waiver of liability prohibited.

In Force
Verified 10/23/2026 · Next check 10/30/2026
effective 10/23/2026HawaiiProhibited Clauses

Operative Text

Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521 § 521-33
A provision in a rental agreement exempting or limiting the landlord, or requiring the tenant to indemnify the landlord, from liability for damages to persons or property caused by or resulting from the acts or omissions of the landlord, the landlord's agents, servants, or employees, in or about the dwelling unit covered thereby or in or about the premises of which it is a part is void. [L 1972, c 132, pt of §1; gen ch 1985]
Source: Legislative text reproduced verbatim
Plain English

Under Hawaii Revised Statutes § 521-33, any clause in a rental agreement that tries to shield a landlord from responsibility for harm caused by the landlord's own actions—or the actions of the landlord's agents or employees—is legally void and unenforceable. This applies to damages to both people and property occurring in or around the rental unit or the broader premises. The rule means that no matter what a lease says, a landlord cannot contractually escape liability for their own negligence or misconduct.

Written by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.6 · Reviewed on October 23, 2026

Plain English — not legal advice.

For Property Managers

Under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-33, lease clauses that attempt to limit or eliminate a landlord's liability for harm caused by the landlord, their agents, or employees are unenforceable as a matter of law. Compliant property operators generally avoid including such indemnification or liability-waiver language in their rental agreements, as doing so has no legal effect and may create confusion about tenants' rights. Reviewing lease templates with a qualified attorney to ensure they do not contain provisions that conflict with § 521-33 is a common practice among property managers operating in Hawaii.

General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.

For Tenants

Hawaii Revised Statutes § 521-33 protects tenants by making any lease provision that waives or limits a landlord's liability for their own wrongful acts legally void—meaning a tenant cannot be bound by such a clause even if they signed the lease. If a landlord attempts to enforce such a provision or deny responsibility for damages caused by their own actions or those of their employees, tenants may raise the unenforceability of that clause as a defense. Tenant-rights organizations in Hawaii and the state's Office of Consumer Protection can be useful resources for understanding how § 521-33 applies in general terms.

General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.

Generated October 23, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.

Effective Timeline

Current
Oct 23, 2026
Click on timeline segments to view historical versions.

References Out

No outbound references recorded yet for this provision.

References In

Rules and statutes that cite this regulation

Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-51
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-71
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-42
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-51
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-52
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-70
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-70
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-44
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-42
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-44
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-42
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-62
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-44
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-43
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-51
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-53
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-52
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-72
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-52
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-51
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-53
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-63
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-42
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-44
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-51
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-80
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-80
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-44
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-44
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-51
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-68
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-71
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-44

Related Rules

§ 28
Waivers of Secs. 23 to 27 void and unenforceable
§ 966.6
§ 966.6 Prohibited lease provisions.
§ 12
Stay of proceedings; validity of waiver in lease

Source Information

Source:https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0521/HRS_0521-0033.htm
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