The scheme, being launched through a partnership with the New India Assurance, offers a dental insurance of Rs 1,000 on purchase of any pack of Pepsodent.

Under this initiative, Pepsodent offers its consumers insurance cover against expenses for the extraction of teeth due to caries and pediodontitis.

However, the scheme involves some amount of paperwork. Consumers wanting to avail of the scheme are required to send in a proposal form which is available in all Superior Pepsodent packs of 100 and 200 gms along with the wrapper of the toothpaste.

To make the claim, the consumer will have to send in three wrappers of Pepsodent along with medical certificates and bills which will be assessed by New India Assurance.

However, the policy will not compensate claims for cosmetic dentistry or loss of tooth due to accidents. Besides, the age limit of the consumer has an upside of 50 years.

HLL said it would bear the entire cost of the insurance under this scheme.

Quoting ORG data, HLL officials said Pepsodent has been gaining market share from 16.4 per cent to 17.3 per cent in August 2002. HLL's oral care has an overall market share of 34.9 per cent in the toothpaste market.