It makes me laugh that a few years ago store cards were in the spotlight for charging around 26% interest pa. - How times have changed
Maybe the issue isn't the existance of these companies and their methods, but the fact that so many have been kinda forced down this route in order to make ends...
I imagine the high interest figure they quote is their way of getting people to pay back any loans quickly.
If they charged only 20 to 30% interest per annum, how many would decide not to repay or not at least straight away and probably spend that money on luxuries / nights out, etc, or...
So what if you take out a mortgage (paying all the fees that go with it) and then have to sell a couple of months later? (again plus all the fees, etc) - I assume you will end up a lot worse off than before