Other options include legal contracts but then again, the kinds of people who accept these loans wouldn't be approved for a regular loan and hence suing them is unlikely to be cost effective. That really only leaves the threat of violence and most small time lenders aren't going to have the resources to do that.
Still, I am surprised that anyone would agree to do this. The deal to me seems incredibly one-sided since you're still having to trust that the other person will go through with the loan -after- you give them the collateral - and that's a huge risk in my opinion. The protocol here could be improved by using an escrow agent but once again that does not completely eliminate trust.
Information is sometimes more liquid than cash ...