Do lenders really care about technical defaults?

If the bank still wants to deal with you, then the waiver fee for the default is usually small, commensurate with how bad the violation is. However, if the default has been outstanding for several quarters, then the 2% penalty interest can be significant. If the bank doesn't want to deal with you, then they can play hard ball with you. It really all depends on current market credit conditions and whether your own credit standing has deteriorated significantly.

Yes, at least enough to collect a waiver fee. Frequent occurrence may jeopardize the credit facility by resulting in it being called.

In my opinion, banks love these smaller technical defaults. Covenant waiver fees are a good source of revenue with very little increase in risk. I emphasize though the smaller covenants. Defaults by large margins or on especially difficult covenants can never be viewed as "not a big deal". You do not want to have your line of credit pulled with little or no notice.