what support can I get for loss of money

Gwenwalpole

In January I booked a holiday house in Skegness for this Easter weekend. I used Holiday Lettings Trip Advisor, a site I thought would be reliable. I had to pay in full in February, £2600, this was to be a family gathering to celebrate my 80th birthday. Obviously this has had to be cancelled. The site has a secure padlock by the details of the property so I was unconcerned. However on cancellation I have been unable to claim from Trip Advisor because the payment did not go through them. Some owners do not accept payments through the site and my only option was a bank transfer. Because the details included the padlock I was fooled into a false sense of security. Because I am over 80 now I have no travel insurance. The owner will hold the booking open for a year but I can't be sure to be around then or if it will be easy to agree a date with all the family. She will not repay any of the money. I offered to share the loss with her, if she repaid halve I would cancel the booking. This was not agreeable. Can she claim anything from the Governemt. Can I claim this money back any other way.
Gwen