Payday loans are a good emergency cash source, especially for those with bad credit records and a poor credit score. For those it would otherwise be next to impossible for them to find emergency cash other than put themselves at the mercy of loan sharks with exorbitant interest rates, and even worse penalties for being unable to make the repayments.

These penalties are more akin to 1920s Chicago mobster movies than 21st century society, but they exist nonetheless. Thank goodness, then, for regular payday loans that allow ordinary people to borrow money quickly to get themselves out of a hole. I know what it's like because I have had to do it.

I shall tell you how I got my payday loan shortly, but first some reasons for needing one. Many people feel that they don't qualify for a payday loan for one reason or another. Here are some of the factors that make them feel that way:

Reason 1: My need is not great enough so I will be refused.

Fact: Wrong! You need give no reason. Nobody will ask you why you want the loan, or if they do you can tell them to mind their own business since it has nothing to do with them. There is no requirement under consumer law for you to provide a reason why you want any loan, other than a mortgage that is provided at lower than normal interest rates. You can use a payday loan for a vacation, a wedding or to pay the kid's school trip. You can even blow it in a bar or spend it on groceries.

Reason 2: I can't pay it back next payday, so it's not a payday loan and I won't get it.

Fact: Wrong! You can 'roll over' your payday loan and pay it the payday after next. That will cost you extra in fees, but you can do it. However, try not to unless you are waiting for somebody's life insurance to come through and you have expenses to pay.

Reason 3: I have a bad credit record, and my credit score is shot. I will never get a loan.

Fact: Wrong again! Most payday loan companies don't carry out a credit check. If they do it might only be to set your fee. Let's face it. If you had good credit then you would use a credit card, not get a payday loan. So very few seeking emergency cash have good credit.

Reason 4: I don't own a house or a car so have no security.

Fact: Wrong! Your regular wage is your security. If you fail to pay then the lender can get a court order against your pay, and your employer will have to pay the lender before they pay you.

Reason 5: I have no job or bank account, so I won't get a payday loan.

Fact: Right at last! Your job and paycheck is the security you provide that the loan will be repaid - see reason 4 above. Also, the loan is paid into your bank account so without one you cannot get the loan. You can get secured loan on your house or any belongings of worth, but not an unsecured loan. Most unsecured loans are actually secured against your income and your employer is served a court order to pay the lender before they pay you, even if that is the whole of your paycheck!

However, don't let that last paragraph worry you because very few lenders go that far without good reason. Your loan can roll over until you have enough money to pay it, and some of the better lenders place a limit on the rollovers that attract extra fees. Some stop them at two, and give you time to get yourself together and make the repayment.

Many people bless payday loans because they provide the emergency cash needed to help them out of a difficult situation. I did, and although I am no longer in that situation, I desperately need short term emergency cash and applied for a payday loan from a company known in the UK as Payday. Here's how my application went.

I needed the equivalent of $700, so I went for no more than that (never get a payday loan for more than you need). I found the company online and started to fill in their online form. The usual at first: name, address, date of birth and so on. I was waiting for the awkward questions: income, expenditure, credit card details, how many other debts I had and so on, but they never came.

Income, sure, since that has a bearing on how much you can borrow on your payday loan. Nothing about credit cards, credit rating, expenditure or other loans. Nothing! I could be owing the Bank of England to Monte Carlo, but they weren't interested.

My employers name and address and telephone number - that's fair. The amount needed and my bank account details. Click 'Submit'. I did that and waited for the credit check. But no - a few minutes later I got a call from the company reception desk. It was an outside call for me that I took: it was the payday loan company just checking that reception could transfer the call to me, signifying that I did really work there.

About 10 seconds later I got an email confirming the loan, and the cash was deposited that very day. How easy was that! It was not only unbelievable, but completely friendly, non-condemnatory and efficient. I could as easily have been ordering a bouquet of flowers for my wife. But that's not all.

It was to be paid on the 30th of the month (I borrowed on the 2nd) but I couldn't pay it because although I said the 30th, I actually get paid on the last day of the month, and this was March with 31 days. I had made a mistake, so I phoned and told them and they said no problems: they put it back a week to the 6th of the next month to give me time at no extra charge.

To me, payday loans are a great way to get fast emergency cash as long as you understand the high fees. I paid 25% on the loan which, although high, was fine for me because it solved a serious problem. I was 100% happy, and that is what payday loans are for. Not for buying a car or any other normal need for finance, but for real emergencies.