A method for determining whether hands of an operator of a vehicle are positioned on a hand wheel of the vehicle is provided. The method generates a first frequency content below a first frequency from a hand wheel torque signal. The method generates a second frequency content above a second frequency from the first frequency content of the hand wheel torque signal. The method generates a hands on wheel (HOW) estimate signal based on the first frequency content and the second frequency content by determining a first contribution of the first frequency content to the HOW estimate signal, determining a second contribution of the second frequency content to the HOW estimate signal, and combining the first contribution and the second contribution to generate the HOW estimate signal. The method causes a system in a vehicle to operate based on the HOW estimate signal.