It's fairly widespread practice
to offer loans to potential "bad-debtors" before the good customers who will pay it all off on time. You're right to suspect that their profit margin is at stake. Think of all the charges for missed payments, red letters, then they get it all back selling the debt to a debt-collection agency.

Try your own bank. In person, not online. Hint that you may feel obliged to move your account (if it's generally in credit then they'll want to keep it) and ask them for twice as much as you need. Then change your mind and go for the lower amount.

No promises, but I know people for whom it has worked.
(TheWeeWitch hasn't been here much recently .., Thu 3 Jul 2008, 15:39, Reply)