Snapchat down: App not working as users told 'app could not refresh' and are asked to keep trying

File photo of the Snapchat app on a mobile phone (PA)

Snapchat has stopped working for at least some of its users.

Instead of showing the usual filters and lenses or the ability send messages, the app is simply failing to load.

Users report seeing a message telling them that the service isn't working and that they should refresh the app. But refreshing does not seem to be working, and thousands of people have reported problems.

Issues were particularly focused western Europe and on the east coast of the US, according to the website Down Detector. That may simply be a result of most of the app's users being in those locations, and that timezones mean people there were more likely to be using the app as the outage hit.

The problems come as Snapchat surged back into prominence with a gender-swapping filter that has been used across the world – and provoked criticism and debate from trans activists, some of whom have argued that it could be seen as offensive.

It was a highlight for the app, which was once one of the fastest-growing and most-discussed app in the world but has run into some problems in recent months and years. Kylie Jenner's tweet last year that she had stopped using the app was part of a broader fall in its fortunes, as Facebook and Instagram have taken many of its most famous features.

In addition to the continual borrowing of new features like Stories by Facebook, a controversial redesign alienated users and many claimed to have stopped using the app.

For most of the the roughly year-and-a-half since, parent company Snap's share price continued to plunge. But its fortunes have turned around somewhat since the new year, and it has nearly doubled over the course of 2019.