In recent years, it has become common for motorists to pay their parking with an app and several new companies selling the service have emerged.

In most apps, you can enter your credit card details so that the money is deducted automatically, but some are preset for the customer to buy an invoice.

This has become an increasingly common sight at many vending machines around the country. Photo: Philip Naskret / SVT

SVT Nyheter has requested statistics from Kronofogden on how many cases concerning payment orders five of the largest parking app companies have with the authority.

The figures show that the total number of cases increased from 7732 in 2016 to 16,530 last year. Johan Krantz, an analyst at Kronofogden, believes that this is a big increase.

- This is something that has emerged as the supply of these types of services has increased, so you can definitely say that it is, he says.

Clearly dark

But the increase may be greater than the statistics show. Some companies use external credit companies to collect the invoices and the cases are not visible in these figures.

- I absolutely believe there can be a dark figure, says Johan Krantz.

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This is how motorists like the parking apps. Hear them tell in the clip above. Photo: Philip Naskret / SVT

When SVT talks to motorists, the opinions about parking apps are shared. Some think they work well and highlight the benefits of being able to extend their parking without having to run to the ticket machine. Others are more critical.

Ulrica Broo has sometimes been forced to pay late fees as the e-invoices are in the junk mail.

- It's not funny. You want them to end up in the right place and in the right inbox, ”she says.

Criticized on review site

At Trustpilot, a site where consumers submit reviews of companies, there are several similar stories. Many claim that they did not find the e-invoices from some of the companies and question the invoices' short due dates, for example ten days.

When SVT is on the Trustpilot site, SMS park is the app that receives the most criticism from consumers. Photo: Screenshot

The company that receives the most criticism is Inteleon, which is behind the sms-park app. Inteleon is also the company that increased its affairs at Kronofogden the most according to the figures SVT received.

Inteleon was recently purchased by competitor Easypark. Although SVT has been searching for Easypark for an interview for several weeks, the company has not returned.