I asked this company to attend my property to provide a quote for an above ground pool to be installed in the ground. A representative showed up on time with a folder containing details about the pool we were after, but no information relating to Captain Nemo's - not even a business card. The "quote" given was some handwritten guesstimates on the back of the pool folder. Silly me paid a deposit, as requested, to 'get the ball rolling'. A few days later I emailed the company (it was the only contact details I had for the guy who had come to give the "quote") advising that we would have to cancel the proposed pool due to some unexpected financial circumstances. I was advised at this point in time that the deposit was non-refundable. This was a massive surprise to me given that I had not been advised of this prior to, at the time of or after paying the deposit. Furthermore I had not signed a contract or order form and I had not been provided with an official quote to "accept". I pointed these facts out to the company who do not seem to care. They claim that they had ordered the pool and were already out of pocket - something I find difficult to comprehend given they had done nothing aside from provide a handwritten guesstimate and they are a pool supplier - the pool we were interested in was a standard pool - in no way customised. I fail to see how the company can possibly be out of pocket for having a pool they sell in stock.
The company refused to refund our deposit on the basis that their "terms and conditions" state deposits are non-refundable. We pointed out that we have never seen those terms and conditions or been advised about them and asked to see a copy. This request was also refused.
We are currently filing a dispute with the Office of Fair Trading.
I would never recommend this company to anyone and feel like an idiot for having ever dealt with them in the first place.

Approximate cost: $12,000