All four county police departments are stepping enforcement of seatbelt laws that require drivers and passengers in the front and back seats to  buckle up.

The annual “Click it or ticket” campaign began Monday and continues through May 25.

Hawaii’s universal seat belt law requires that all front and back seat motor vehicle occupants buckle up. Children must use their seat belts and child restraints at all times.

The fine for unrestrained occupants on Oahu, Hawaii and Maui is $102, and the fine on Kauai is $112, according to the state Department of Transportation.

From Oct. 2013 to Sept. 2014, police cited 11,854 drivers in Hawaii  for failure to use a seat belt. In addition, 1,573 drivers were issued citations for failure to secure a child under 8 years of age in their vehicles. 

As of June 2014, Hawaii had a seat belt usage rate of 94 percent, the same as the previous year.

“We’ve heard too many stories about senseless deaths that were the result of motor vehicle occupants being ejected from their vehicles,”Transportation Director Ford Fuchigami said. “The majority of those deaths could have been avoided if motor vehicle occupants simply remembered to wear their seat belts and restrain children in child safety seats.”