I'm a sucker for the neatness of the square.

I checked the pavers that were left over from the same batch...low and behold 2 out of the 13 pavers also had the same white streaks on them. These are unused pavers. I'm now leaning towards the manufacturing stage and the retailer I have convinced of the same. He is sending someone out on Monday to see if some sort of chemical will clean them. I fear the worse but let's see how it goes on a couple of them. I agree with you all entirely, the streaks and scratches should have been seen before laying and not used. Luck is what I need for Monday, failing that, block your ears as I ask the pool renovator to pull up the defective pavers and lay new ones.... Renovating tests your body, mind and spirit sometimes lol

Probably comes down to your budget. A herringbone pattern would add interest, but may be more costly to lay than a stack pattern. It’s the colour of the paving bricks against your home that would be worth more consideration.

Thanks for that Kate. Yes I’ve seen this video already actually :) However it doesn’t explain if need wet concrete at same time under each paver before placing it down and haunching (as my pavers will have 50mm spacing between them so it’s different to the one in that video which are all continuous / butted up against each other).