A new scaled-down version of Fixflo has launched, aimed at small landlords who manage their own properties.

Called TenantRepair.com, the site is free.

It enables tenants to report repair issues using simple visual prompts and in a choice of over 40 languages.

The site has in-built advice to help tenants fix simple issues themselves, without unnecessary call-outs for which they may be charged.

Issues that require the services of a professional are identified, analysed and reported. Tenants are prompted to accurately describe their issue and upload photos from their smartphone or tablet.

Landlords receive a text alert when a repair problem has been reported, and both they and the tenant get time- and date-stamped records of the issue by email which include any photos taken of the problem.

TenantRepair.com, founded by Rajeev Nayyar, a former property lawyer, aims to put an end to deposit and maintenance disputes by establishing clear lines of communication and keeping records of them.

Nayyar said: “The private property sector has failed to evolve with the digital age, but we’re changing all that.

“As a property lawyer I know a thing or two about disputes and I felt it was time somebody developed mechanisms not just to solve them, but to help prevent them too.”

Jeremy Snead, a landlord who relocated to the Caribbean, said: “I underestimated how hard it can be to manage a property if you’re not nearby. My tenant reported a problem with the toilet, but being thousands of miles away I wasn’t able to pop over to have a look.

“I asked my tenant to use www.tenantrepair.com and through it I was able to get a detailed description and photos of the problem that I could forward on to a local contractor. This helped me to get an accurate quote without having to pay a premium for the work.”

TenantRepair.com has been endorsed by Generation Rent which believes it will help renters with their disputes.

According to Nayyar, the most common repair issues reported by tenants are to do with bathrooms and toilets (17.13% of all repair requests), followed by kitchens (12.6%).

Third were doors, garages and locks issues (6.44%) followed by floors, walls and ceiling (6.34%), heating (5.82%), water and leaks (5.60%), exterior and garden (4.72%), window problems (4.57%), laundry (4.56%) and lighting (4.49%).