Yes, I worked in and around PPI for a number of years and know plenty of people who used it for the purpose it was intended. They were out of work and had no way to pay their loan or credit card and the PPI policy stepped in.
It’s true that mis-selling was wide but it is definitely not true that it should have been automatically refunded. FOS stats over time show around 2/3 of complaints upheld in favour of the consumer. Granted in some businesses the uphold rate is over 90% but conversely for others it is down in single digits. That kind of blanket statement helps no-one and over-simplifies the issue to a ridiculous level.