What kind of training is available?
If you are using a breathalyzer in a personal or professional environment and are not following a program or regulation specifically required or administered by the DOT (Department of Transportation), then you do not need any special training to operate your breathalyzer.

If you are using a breathalyzer in a professional environment as part of a DOT (Department of Transportation) program, you must maintain DOT "qualifications" as either an STT or a BAT. The STT (Screening Test Technician) operates "screening"-type breathalyzers and the BAT (Breath Alcohol Technician) operates both "screening"-type and "evidential"-type breathalyzers.

There is NO official certification or qualification offered by, endorsed by, or affiliated with the DOT. However, there are several third-party companies that offer equivalent qualification training for STT and BAT status.

The two key components of STT and BAT qualifications are that the DOT documents regarding drug/alcohol testing should be maintained, and that the trainee should also complete consecutive error-free mock tests using an appropriate breathalyzer (5 consecutive tests for STT, 7 consecutive tests for BAT).

• DOT Drug/Alcohol Regulation 49 CFR 40
• Contact us for STT/BAT Model Training Courses and Student Handbooks

Screening breathalyzers are most commonly used in workplaces and carried by police officers due to their accuracy combined with their lower cost (compared to evidential units). Evidential units are often 10 times the cost of screening units, but evidential units can report results that can be used directly as court evidence.