Payment technology firm flatfair has launched a new online portal, Resolve by flatfair, to let landlords agree on a payment plan for any rent arrears accrued due to COVID-19 with their tenants.

Residential landlords of all sizes will be adversely impacted by rental shortfalls. Resolve aims to give these landlords a tool to assist them in obtaining evidence of hardship and provide date stamped correspondence.

Franz Doerr, chief executive and founder of flatfair, said: “Being able to do this clearly, transparently and quickly may be tough for many buy-to-let landlords - broken lines of communication and a lack of understanding can lead to rifts that won’t mend easily.

“That’s why we launched Resolve, an online platform that allows landlords to ask tenants to submit proof of financial distress - such as a redundancy letter - which the landlord can then review and suggest a payment plan.

"Crucially, all the correspondence and documentation is recorded online on the portal meaning there is a clear record that these discussions have happened," he added.

While there are currently restrictions on evicting tenants as part of the government’s Coronavirus support measures, housing secretary Robert Jenrick recently confirmed that landlords will be expected to mediate fairly with their tenants before any kind of eviction proceedings can move forward post coronavirus.

Any landlord, not just those who use flatfair’s deposit alternative product, can sign up for Resolve free of charge. Tenants are also able to use the platform for free, meaning they can raise concerns over their financial situation, by uploading proof of their financial situation, with their landlord in a recorded manner.

A landlord who has or expects properties to fall into rent arrears can request their tenant upload proof of financial distress onto Resolve. The landlord can then review these documents before proposing a payment plan over the portal which the tenant can accept or reject. Once the payment plan is agreed, both parties sign the plan electronically on the platform.

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