AXA's Director of Proection Marketing, Iain Mallon, examines yesterday's budget - and the impact it could have on protection.

The Chancellor himself dubbed it "the unavoidable budget" and it seems that no one in Britain will escape the impact of yesterday's emergency budget.

There are clear impacts on the protection market, as well as some areas to watch with interest when more detail is released.

Capital Gains Tax

Bringing in the rise from today, rather than some future date, should avoid any rush of buy-to-let owners trying to offload their properties before they're hit by the higher tax rate.

This could have caused serious destabilisation in an already fragile property market.

However, that might not be the best news for first time buyers, who are often the ones who take out protection.  If the market had been flooded with buy-to-let properties, it could have forced housing prices down and therefore made it easier for people to get on the property ladder.

Brass in pocket

Everyone will feel the pinch of higher VAT, and many will be affected by cuts or freezes in benefits and pay.

This could increase the risk of clients lapsing existing policies, if they are looking at where they can make cutbacks in their monthly outgoings.

Equally, for some people it may swing the other way.  If consumers are more aware of the financial risks they face, they might be more open to the idea of proecting themselves.

This could particularly be the case for those with children.  A lot of yesterday's cuts affected support for children.  Therefore it's more important than ever for parents to ensure their children will be looked after if they're unable to work, become ill, or die.

Back in business

SMEs were the winners in yesterday's budget, with a raft of measures proposed to help them get off the ground, find finance, reward entrepreneurs and encourage them to take on staff.

As small businesses grow they're more likely to need a strong business protection offering to help ensure the longevity of their enterprise.