I seem to remember 2 or 3 years back that several festival organisers had been saying that the credit card companies were refusing to release funds from online sales until the event had actually happened. Presumably to avoid this very sort of thing happening.

If this is still the case, then it should be possible to claim from the credit card companies, who are presumably holding the funds. Unless of course the Beverley organisers managed to get round it, in which case they may have had the money. Once their Company goes into liquidation, they are prohibited from paying back any money as it becomes the Creditors' money to be shared out by the Liquidators.

The AFO will no doubt know more about this.