Pools R Us goes into liquidation, leaving dozens with unfinished pools

A Melbourne-based pool construction company has gone into liquidation, leaving dozens of people with unfinished swimming pools across Victoria.

A Melbourne-based pool construction company has gone into liquidation, leaving dozens of people with unfinished swimming pools across Victoria.

A caller first revealed to 3AW radio that Pools R Us had collapsed, leaving him with a giant hole in his ground at his property.

The business’ phone line has been disconnected, leaving customers stranded as they look for solutions.

The company’s website has also shut down.

Several review pages had left one-star ratings in the months before the company’s collapse.

“Please be very careful working with them. I am still building a pool with them and they could not finish the pool for the last five months,” one wrote.

“According to the contract they should finish building the pool within four weeks. The contract is front loaded and once they take your money they stop coming without finishing the job.”

There are reportedly as many as 80 clients seeking tens of thousands of dollars in deposits back from Nyerse Constructions Pty Ltd, which traded under the name Pools R Us.

The pool construction company went into liquidation on June 1.

Melbourne-based pool construction company ‘Pools R Us’ has gone into liquidation. Pictured is a pool by Pools R Us.

The Pools R Us listing on Google has changed to "permanently closed", and has been tarnished with poor reviews. Picture: Google / Supplied

Customers were sent an email on May 31 saying the company director Chris Rhrodes was undergoing treatment for a health issue that was “taking a very heavy toll” on his family and the business.

“Our office has been closed for the past couple of weeks due to the time we are having to spend with Chris,” the letter, seen by news.com.au, read.

“We have been working on options moving forward regarding completing and commencing works however unfortunately the course of desire and hope to move forward has been interrupted over the past several days.”

The letter claimed a number of other incidents had also caused “damage” to the company.

“Our website and Google Maps listing has been hacked (the listing was changed to permanently closed), alongside several death threats towards us and our families, including their children.

“This is something we cannot work through or tolerate.”

The company said it had provided the “recordings, text messages, and Facebook group posts and members” made by a “handful of people” to Victoria Police.

“Regrettably and with much sadness, we have had to make the difficult decision to permanently close Pools R Us after many years of building quality swimming pools and many hundreds of happy, wonderful customers,” the letter continued.

It said the company had “every avenue and all options in our power to continue trading under the circumstances we were facing” including continuing through the Covid pandemic, an “insanely bad year of weather” in 2022, increased building costs, and supply and staff shortages.

“Despite all of this, over the past couple of years our focus remained on continuing to work through all our commitments.

“We are absolutely devastated that we have had to make this decision and unfortunately, due to events over the last few days … we believe it is no longer possible or safe for us [to] continue trading.”

A pool from Pools R Us. Picture: Supplied / Google Maps

The final letter sent to Pools R Us clients advising them the company was closing "permanently" after a number of incidents had "taken a toll". Picture: Supplied

Furious clients left in the lurch have smashed the company since news of its collapse broke.

One client claimed to the Daily Mail she was owed $32,000 after paying deposits for the shell of a pool in April 2022.

She was reportedly told the pool would be installed within a couple of months but, instead, she and her husband were sent letters from the company warning of delays due to weather, manufacturing, staff shortages, and issues securing a permit.

After months trying to get in touch with Pools R Us – with “no response” except for a “random generic email” saying staff would be in touch – the woman visited the company’s Dandenong South office in February to demand answers.

She claimed she was turned away from the office and then sent a number of emails promising construction would begin before eventually learning the company had collapsed.

Another Pools R Us Client, Laura, fears she has lost $27,000 after signing a contract for a pool in mid-2022

Laura told the Daily Mail the company had promised to build the pool within a few months when other companies said it would take up to more than a year.

She claims she was charged three upfront payments totalling just over $27,000, equal to 50 per cent of the deposit.

“As soon as we paid the deposit, we didn’t hear from them,” she told the Daily Mail.

“We spoke with them but it was always us initiating contact, we weren’t given any time frames for the work or even a start date.”

She said she was told in February the pool would be ready by June or July, pending the weather, and that the couple were “very understanding” of the company’s struggles.

“We were understanding there would be delays but we definitely didn’t expect what’s happened.”

But Laura said she has received radio silence from the company since April this year.

“It’s just so unfair they’re possibly going to get away with this and not pay us a cent,” she said, adding the final email to clients had a “huge victim mentality”.