Hi Sarah,

I can completely understand your concerns - you might be interested to have a look at this thread where you will find some pointers on how to build up a rapport with the owner and check the legitimacy of the letting as far as possible.

I don't have much experience of websites that specialise in lettings in the UK, but of the more general ones these two are the ones I would recommend:-

http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk/index.htm
http://www.holidaylets.net/

Depending on which area of the UK you are planning to visit, Wales is definitely worth a visit, some beautiful villages, beaches and the famous Pembrokeshire Coastal Path, I can recommend a couple of sites which may help:-

http://www.cottageguide.co.uk
http://www.walesholidayhomes.co.uk

Hope they come in useful

And in Scotland you couldn't do better than use the offical Tourist board site:

http://www.visitscotland.com/

You can book all types of accommodation via them from simple country cottages to 5 star hotels. They list only private lettings that are vetted and graded by them and for most accommodation you can book either through Visit Scotand or direct with the owner. It costs the same either way but booking via Visit Scotland means that you can use a credit card - few private owners renting out their own holiday home are able to take credit card bookings. I have used this site a great deal and never had any problems whether booking a flat in Edinburgh or a cottage in the Highlands.

Visit England does the same job for England at

http://www.enjoyengland.com/

And Visit Britain covers the whole of the UK from

http://www.visitbritain.co.uk/

As you're based in Australia it's worth knowing that all the official Tourist Boards and information services for visitors in the UK are now branded 'Visit XXXX', including the regional ones too. So if there's a particular region you know you want to visit, Googling eg 'Visit Southeastern England' will give you the link to the requisite local tourist information authority. This isn't foolproof - some private sites have cottoned on to the 'visitxxxx.com' convention but the official sites make it very clear that they are the websites of official bodies and if this is absent then be a bit more cautious.

SM

This might help to set your mind at rest

http://guaranteeuk.homeaway.com/