[pytester]

Payday lenders don't operate within a vacuum but people would still be better off if they didn't operate at all:

https://www.responsiblelending.org/sites/default/files/nodes...

[simplecomplex]

Speak for yourself. A payday loan was the only thing that bailed me out from missing rent and getting evicted.

Payday loans are a lot less predatory than every major bank credit card. They at least ensure you have money to pay them back.

[pytester]

The study showed that people showed a strong tendency to tap other options where payday operators weren't available and ended up financially better off overall.