Now your customers can afford to take fido to the vet.

• Position: New Products - Brief Article

Marketers should take notice whenever they hear of a product whose popularity is increasing at a 125 percent annual rate. And that is exactly what is happening in the area of health insurance for pets.

HSBC, a commercial bank with more than 400 branches in New York state, announced recently that it will distribute pet insurance plans through its HSBC Insurance Agency. MSBC is licensed to sell insurance nationwide and will promote the pet insurance to its more than 3 million deposit customers. Additionally, nearly 14,000 HSBC employees can now select pet insurance plans as a voluntary benefit.

The pet insurance is provided through a partnership with Veterinary Pet Insurance Co., Brea, Calif., and D.V.M. Insurance Agency (known jointly as VPI). VPI currently provides more than 80 percent the nation's pet insurance policies.

Last year, the number of groups participating in voluntary employee benefits programs...