Question For techs...few questions

Do you have a stash of seats to have on hand?
About how long do you take for a check and what do you cover?

I'm taking my class in January and am just trying to get a feel for what it's like in tech land lol. How formal are the sessions?

I don't have a seat stash currently....however once we move & have room I plan too it would be nice to have at least 1 seat from stage of use.

I don't charge but I do accept donations & usually just request a donation if the family is able....if I have to travel to someone's home they usually offer to pay & I usually accept...there is no huge cost to doing checks but it is my time & I usually have to set up someone to watch my munchkins & then photocopy fee's & not to mention I paid OOP for the course so a little here & there does help!

Checks are pretty casual where I live ...I usually introduce myself , then I get them to provide me with the carseat manual & vehicle manual...I have a form I work from that I submit to my instructor & it's kinda designed to guide you on the proper check questions etc.... I always make the parent help if not do the install themselves.....depends on the specific situation but the goal is to make the parent/caregiver 100% confident with their ability to do the install themselves
Good luck

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I'm interested in this topic as well since I've thought about becoming a tech, but then don't know what I'd "do" with my certification afterwards.

I only have my own seats. If I do a private check for someone who needs a new seat, then I have contact information for who in our area can help them with a new one.

A typical check takes maybe 30-ish minutes. I check out the current installation, take the seat out and go through its features with the parent(s), referencing the manual so that they know that they can go back and look stuff up, fix things like harness height and twisted straps (that you usually need to fix while the seat is out of the car), sit the child in the seat and explain when to move straps up, when the seat is outgrown, etc. Then we go through the installation in the car, talking about LATCH vs seatbelt, allowable LATCH positions, top tethering, etc. Sometimes I'll do the installation first to show them and then uninstall and have them do it, but other times I'll just talk them through it the first time. Then show them how to check for a tight installation, check to make sure they can buckle their kid in properly, ask if they have any questions, etc. I give them a summary sheet when they leave that has information about their seat's weight/height limits and reminders about when to transition to the next step (RF to FF, next seat, etc). If the child is close to needing a new seat, then I'll write down some recommendations for specific seats and shopping websites.

I do use a form for the seat checks, which helps make sure you're not forgetting anything important!

I don't, mostly because I do this volunteer because I just love car seats we currently just lost our local check coordinator, I'm pretty much the only active tech in the western portion of our state, so if the state will give us a budget to continue, I'd love to take over the coordination of our checks, and at that point might purchase seats for a situation where the child just shouldn't be leaving in their current seat.
I use the State of North Dakota's Health Department form for checks, and then scan and submit them to my instructor (when I do independent checks)

Our checks only run April-October, so right now I'm working on an advertisement to put up locally with my availability to do checks over the winter (need to finish cleaning my garage first, haha).

Our seat checks are fairly informal, with an emphasis on correcting misuse, and educating the parents/caregiver.
I like to practice with my mom and husband, haha.