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Document and Entity Information - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Mar. 01, 2013	Jun. 30, 2012
Entity Registrant Name	DONEGAL GROUP INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000800457
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2012
Amendment Flag	false
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Public Float			$ 176,019,297
Common Class A
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		20,050,649
Common Class B
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		5,576,775

Consolidated Balance Sheets - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Fixed maturities
Held to maturity, at amortized cost (fair value $43,735,739 and $61,422,347)	$ 42,100,196	$ 58,489,619
Available for sale, at fair value (amortized cost $655,173,806 and $614,298,854)	694,509,821	646,598,178
Equity securities, available for sale, at fair value (cost $8,663,183 and $7,238,803)	8,757,258	7,437,538
Investments in affiliates	37,235,530	32,322,246
Short-term investments, at cost, which approximates fair value	23,826,227	40,461,410
Total investments	806,429,032	785,308,991
Cash	19,801,290	13,245,378
Accrued investment income	6,332,085	6,713,038
Premiums receivable	117,196,478	104,715,327
Reinsurance receivable	215,893,322	209,823,907
Deferred policy acquisition costs	40,121,697	36,424,955
Deferred tax asset, net	6,267,536	9,919,720
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	111,156,162	106,450,018
Property and equipment, net	5,953,833	6,154,383
Accounts receivable - securities		1,507,500
Federal income taxes recoverable		2,661,808
Goodwill	5,625,354	5,625,354
Other intangible assets	958,010	958,010
Other	1,154,388	1,285,089
Total assets	1,336,889,187	1,290,793,478
Liabilities
Losses and loss expenses	458,827,395	442,407,615
Unearned premiums	363,088,103	336,937,261
Accrued expenses	17,140,832	20,956,549
Reinsurance balances payable	13,941,337	20,039,339
Borrowings under line of credit	52,000,000	54,500,000
Cash dividends declared to stockholders	3,066,532	2,996,076
Subordinated debentures	20,465,000	20,465,000
Federal income taxes payable	583,977
Due to affiliate	4,579,437	5,386,391
Drafts payable	863,589	1,548,953
Other	2,298,891	2,104,702
Total liabilities	936,855,093	907,341,886
Stockholders' Equity
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, authorized 2,000,000 shares; none issued
Additional paid-in capital	176,416,585	170,836,943
Accumulated other comprehensive income	26,394,577	23,533,447
Retained earnings	209,670,214	199,604,700
Treasury stock, at cost	(12,713,193)	(10,787,520)
Total stockholders' equity	400,034,094	383,451,592
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	1,336,889,187	1,290,793,478
Common Class A
Stockholders' Equity
Common stock value	209,419	207,530
Total stockholders' equity	209,419	207,530
Common Class B
Stockholders' Equity
Common stock value	56,492	56,492
Total stockholders' equity	$ 56,492	$ 56,492

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Parenthetical) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Held to maturity, fair value	$ 43,735,739	$ 61,422,347
Available for sale, amortized cost	655,173,806	614,298,854
Equity securities, available for sale, at cost	$ 8,663,183	$ 7,238,803
Preferred stock, par value	$ 1.00	$ 1.00
Preferred stock, shares authorized	2,000,000	2,000,000
Preferred stock, shares issued
Common Class A
Common stock, par value	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares authorized	30,000,000	30,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	20,941,821	20,752,999
Common stock, shares outstanding	20,025,199	19,971,441
Common Class B
Common stock, par value	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares authorized	10,000,000	10,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	5,649,240	5,649,240
Common stock, shares outstanding	5,576,775	5,576,775

Consolidated Statements of Income and Comprehensive Income - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Revenues
Net premiums earned (includes affiliated reinsurance of $142,608,940, $130,555,613 and $134,823,098 - see note 3)	$ 475,002,222	$ 431,470,184	$ 378,030,129
Investment income, net of investment expenses	20,168,919	20,858,179	19,949,714
Installment payment fees	7,465,532	7,427,509	5,519,287
Lease income	953,216	957,353	922,937
Net realized investment gains	6,859,439	12,281,267	4,395,720
Equity in earnings (loss) of DFSC	4,533,257	2,023,127	(268,341)
Total revenues	514,982,585	475,017,619	408,549,446
Expenses
Net losses and loss expenses (includes affiliated reinsurance of $81,219,926, $87,950,502 and $81,539,930 - see note 3)	332,871,584	340,502,777	274,308,858
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs	74,314,000	68,571,000	66,354,000
Other underwriting expenses	73,914,514	66,923,764	54,564,500
Policyholder dividends	1,342,582	1,240,079	619,158
Interest	2,358,711	2,126,784	799,578
Other	2,322,934	2,392,528	2,059,203
Total expenses	487,124,325	481,756,932	398,705,297
Income (loss) before income tax expense (benefit)	27,858,260	(6,739,313)	9,844,149
Income tax expense (benefit)	4,765,640	(7,192,266)	(1,623,030)
Net income	23,092,620	452,953	11,467,179
Unrealized gains (losses) on securities:
Unrealized holding gain (loss) arising during the period, net of income tax (benefit) of $4,833,143, $12,237,669 and ($1,976,358)	9,171,817	23,077,997	(3,544,783)
Reclassification adjustment for gains included in net income, net of income tax of $2,332,209, $4,175,631 and $1,494,545	(4,527,230)	(8,105,636)	(2,901,175)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	4,644,587	14,972,361	(6,445,958)
Comprehensive income	$ 27,737,207	$ 15,425,314	$ 5,021,221
Common Class A
Earnings per common share:
Earnings per share, Basic	$ 0.92	$ 0.02	$ 0.46
Earnings per share, Diluted	0.91	0.02	0.46
Common Class B
Earnings per common share:
Earnings per share, Basic	0.83	0.01	0.41
Earnings per share, Diluted	$ 0.83	$ 0.01	$ 0.41

Consolidated Statements of Income and Comprehensive Income (Parenthetical) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Consolidated Statements of Income and Comprehensive Income [Abstract]
Net premiums earned - affiliated reinsurance	$ 142,608,940	$ 130,555,613	$ 134,823,098
Net losses and loss expenses - affiliated reinsurance	81,219,926	87,950,502	81,539,930
Income tax (benefit) on unrealized holding gain (loss) arising during the period	4,833,143	12,237,669	(1,976,358)
Income tax (benefit) on reclassification adjustment for gains	$ 2,332,209	$ 4,175,631	$ 1,494,545

Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity - USD ($)	Total	Additional Paid-In Capital	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income	Retained Earnings	Treasury Stock	Common Class A	Common Class B
Beginning balance at Dec. 31, 2009	$ 385,505,699	$ 164,585,214	$ 15,007,044	$ 214,755,495	$ (9,104,246)	$ 205,700	$ 56,492
Beginning balance, shares at Dec. 31, 2009						20,569,930	5,649,240
Issuance of common stock (stock compensation plans)	1,199,422	1,198,556				$ 866
Issuance of common stock (stock compensation plans), shares						86,597
Net income	11,467,179			11,467,179
Cash dividends	(11,477,845)			(11,477,845)
Grant of stock options		1,309,734		(1,309,734)
Purchase of treasury stock	(145,687)				(145,687)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(6,445,958)		(6,445,958)
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2010	380,102,810	167,093,504	8,561,086	213,435,095	(9,249,933)	$ 206,566	$ 56,492
Ending balance, shares at Dec. 31, 2010						20,656,527	5,649,240
Issuance of common stock (stock compensation plans)	1,460,543	1,459,579				$ 964
Issuance of common stock (stock compensation plans), shares						96,472
Net income	452,953			452,953
Cash dividends	(11,999,488)			(11,999,488)
Grant of stock options		2,283,860		(2,283,860)
Purchase of treasury stock	(1,537,587)				(1,537,587)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	14,972,361		14,972,361
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2011	383,451,592	170,836,943	23,533,447	199,604,700	(10,787,520)	$ 207,530	$ 56,492
Ending balance, shares at Dec. 31, 2011						20,752,999	5,649,240
Issuance of common stock (stock compensation plans)	2,997,511	2,995,622				$ 1,889
Issuance of common stock (stock compensation plans), shares						188,822
Net income	23,092,620			23,092,620
Cash dividends	(12,278,965)			(12,278,965)
Grant of stock options		2,531,598		(2,531,598)
Tax benefit on exercise of stock options	52,422	52,422
Purchase of treasury stock	(1,925,673)				(1,925,673)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	4,644,587		4,644,587
Other			(1,783,457)	1,783,457
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2012	$ 400,034,094	$ 176,416,585	$ 26,394,577	$ 209,670,214	$ (12,713,193)	$ 209,419	$ 56,492
Ending balance, shares at Dec. 31, 2012						20,941,821	5,649,240

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Cash Flows from Operating Activities:
Net income	$ 23,092,620	$ 452,953	$ 11,467,179
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	3,950,693	4,106,561	3,143,767
Net realized investment gains	(6,859,439)	(12,281,267)	(4,395,720)
Equity in (earnings) loss of DFSC	(4,533,257)	(2,023,127)	268,341
Changes in Assets and Liabilities:
Losses and loss expenses	16,419,780	59,088,943	14,904,770
Unearned premiums	26,150,842	39,665,100	21,762,781
Accrued expenses	(3,815,717)	(330,857)	718,956
Premiums receivable	(12,481,151)	(8,247,378)	(7,478,337)
Deferred policy acquisition costs	(3,696,742)	(1,979,376)	(1,601,400)
Deferred income taxes	1,151,250	(5,922,491)	(2,380,430)
Reinsurance receivable	(6,069,415)	(35,987,161)	(5,348,447)
Accrued investment income	380,953	652,133	(489,244)
Amounts due to affiliate	(806,954)	2,460,287	(887,190)
Reinsurance balances payable	(6,098,002)	899,017	(320,278)
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	(4,706,144)	(17,084,247)	(8,270,621)
Current income taxes	3,245,785	(1,713,483)	(368,145)
Other, net	(360,477)	(674,296)	1,278,821
Net adjustments	1,872,005	20,628,358	10,537,624
Net cash provided by operating activities	24,964,625	21,081,311	22,004,803
Purchases of fixed maturities:
Available for sale	(241,343,085)	(189,111,596)	(195,198,227)
Purchase of equity securities:	(31,254,324)	(23,857,802)	(59,191,998)
Sales of fixed maturities
Available for sale	90,484,097	122,873,102	72,092,788
Maturity of fixed maturities:
Held to maturity	16,061,587	5,888,236	8,649,275
Available for sale	115,501,507	53,763,701	80,116,222
Sales of equity securities	30,001,187	27,036,422	70,029,195
Purchase of MICO		(7,207,471)	(35,088,228)
Net increase in investment in affiliates	(100,000)	(20,570,000)
Net purchases of property and equipment	(744,082)	(238,538)	(651,160)
Net sales of short-term investments	16,635,183	314,583	16,052,089
Net cash used in investing activities	(4,757,930)	(31,109,363)	(43,190,044)
Cash Flows from Financing Activities:
Issuance of common stock	2,983,399	1,460,543	1,199,422
Cash dividends paid	(12,208,509)	(11,874,367)	(11,405,268)
Purchase of treasury stock	(1,925,673)	(1,537,587)	(145,687)
Payments on line of credit	(6,000,000)	(3,617,371)
Borrowings under line of credit	3,500,000	22,500,000	34,955,088
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities	(13,650,783)	6,931,218	24,603,555
Net increase (decrease) in cash	6,555,912	(3,096,834)	3,418,314
Cash at beginning of year	13,245,378	16,342,212	12,923,898
Cash at end of year	$ 19,801,290	$ 13,245,378	$ 16,342,212

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

1 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Organization and Business

Donegal Mutual Insurance Company (“Donegal Mutual”) organized us as an insurance holding company on August 26, 1986. Our insurance subsidiaries, Atlantic States Insurance Company (“Atlantic States”), Southern Insurance Company of Virginia (“Southern”), Le Mars Insurance Company (“Le Mars”), the Peninsula Insurance Group (“Peninsula”), which consists of Peninsula Indemnity Company and The Peninsula Insurance Company, Sheboygan Falls Insurance Company (“Sheboygan”) and Michigan Insurance Company (“MICO”), write personal and commercial lines of property and casualty coverages exclusively through a network of independent insurance agents in certain Mid-Atlantic, Midwestern, New England and Southern states. We acquired MICO on December 1, 2010, and we have included MICO’s results of operations in our consolidated results of operations since that date. We also own 48.2% of the outstanding stock of Donegal Financial Services Corporation (“DFSC”), a grandfathered unitary savings and loan holding company that owns Union Community Bank FSB (“UCB”), a federal savings bank. UCB has 13 banking offices, all of which are located in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Donegal Mutual owns the remaining 51.8% of the outstanding stock of DFSC.

We have four segments: our investment function, our personal lines of insurance, our commercial lines of insurance and our investment in DFSC. The personal lines products of our insurance subsidiaries consist primarily of homeowners and private passenger automobile policies. The commercial lines products of our insurance subsidiaries consist primarily of commercial automobile, commercial multi-peril and workers’ compensation policies.

At December 31, 2012, Donegal Mutual held approximately 39% of our outstanding Class A common stock and approximately 76% of our outstanding Class B common stock. This ownership provides Donegal Mutual with approximately 66% of the total voting power of our common stock. Our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual have interrelated operations due to a pooling agreement and other intercompany agreements and transactions. While each company maintains its separate corporate existence, our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual conduct business together as the Donegal Insurance Group. As such, Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries share the same business philosophy, the same management, the same employees and the same facilities and offer the same types of insurance products.

Atlantic States, our largest subsidiary, participates in a pooling agreement with Donegal Mutual. Under the pooling agreement, the two companies pool their insurance business and each company receives an allocated percentage of the pooled business. Atlantic States has an 80% share of the results of the pooled business, and Donegal Mutual has a 20% share of the results of the pooled business.

The same executive management and underwriting personnel administer products, classes of business underwritten, pricing practices and underwriting standards of Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries. In addition, as the Donegal Insurance Group, Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries share a combined business plan to achieve market penetration and underwriting profitability objectives. The products our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual market are generally complementary, thereby allowing the Donegal Insurance Group to offer a broader range of products to a given market and to expand the Donegal Insurance Group’s ability to service an entire personal lines or commercial lines account. Distinctions within the products of Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries generally relate to specific risk profiles targeted within similar classes of business, such as preferred tier versus standard tier products, but we do not allocate all of the standard risk gradients to one company. Therefore, the underwriting profitability of the business the individual companies write directly will vary. However, as the risk characteristics of all business Donegal Mutual and Atlantic States write directly are homogenized within the underwriting pool, Donegal Mutual and Atlantic States share the underwriting results in proportion to their respective participation in the pool. Pooled business represents the predominant percentage of the net underwriting activity of both Donegal Mutual and Atlantic States. We refer to Note 3 - Transactions with Affiliates for more information regarding the pooling agreement.

In December 2010, we acquired MICO, which had been a majority owned subsidiary of West Bend Mutual Insurance Company (“West Bend”), for $42.3 million in cash. Effective on December 1, 2010, MICO entered into a 50% quota-share agreement with third-party reinsurers and a 25% quota-share reinsurance agreement with Donegal Mutual to replace the 75% quota-share reinsurance agreement MICO maintained with West Bend through November 30, 2010.

In May 2011, DFSC and Union National Financial Corporation (“UNNF”) merged, with DFSC as the surviving company in the merger. Under the merger agreement, Province Bank FSB, which DFSC owned, and Union National Community Bank, which UNNF owned, also merged and began doing business as UCB. Donegal Mutual contributed $22.1 million and we contributed $20.6 million to DFSC as additional capital to facilitate the mergers. We use the equity method of accounting for our investment in DFSC. Under the equity method, we record our investment at cost, with adjustments for our share of DFSC’s earnings and losses as well as changes in DFSC’s equity due to unrealized gains and losses.

Basis of Consolidation

Our consolidated financial statements, which we have prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, include our accounts and those of our wholly owned subsidiaries. We have eliminated all significant inter-company accounts and transactions in consolidation. The terms “we,” “us,” “our” or the “Company” as used herein refer to the consolidated entity.

Use of Estimates

In preparing our consolidated financial statements, our management makes estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the balance sheet and revenues and expenses for the period. Actual results could differ significantly from those estimates.

We make estimates and assumptions that can have a significant effect on amounts and disclosures we report in our consolidated financial statements. The most significant estimates relate to our insurance subsidiaries’ reserves for property and casualty insurance unpaid losses and loss expenses, valuation of investments and determination of other-than-temporary impairment and our insurance subsidiaries’ policy acquisition costs. While we believe our estimates and the estimates of our insurance subsidiaries are appropriate, the ultimate amounts may differ from the estimates provided. We regularly review our methods for making these estimates as well as the continuing appropriateness of the estimated amounts, and we reflect any adjustment we consider necessary in our current results of operations.

Reclassification

During 2012, we recorded an entry that reduced Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income and increased Retained Earnings by $1.8 million to correct an immaterial error related to prior years.

Investments

We classify our debt and equity securities into the following categories:

Held to Maturity - Debt securities that we have the positive intent and ability to hold to maturity; reported at amortized cost.

Available for Sale - Debt and equity securities not classified as held to maturity; reported at fair value, with unrealized gains and losses excluded from income and reported as a separate component of stockholders’ equity (net of tax effects).

Short-term investments carried at amortized cost, which approximates fair value.

We make estimates concerning the valuation of our investments and the recognition of other-than-temporary declines in the value of our investments. For equity securities, we write down the investment to its fair value and we reflect the amount of the write-down as a realized loss in our results of operations when we consider the decline in value of an individual investment to be other than temporary. We individually monitor all of our investments for other-than-temporary declines in value. Generally, we assume there has been an other-than-temporary decline in value if an individual equity security has depreciated in value by more than 20% of original cost and has been in such an unrealized loss position for more than six months. With respect to a debt security that is in an unrealized loss position, we first assess if we intend to sell the debt security. If we determine we intend to sell the debt security, we recognize the impairment loss in our results of operations. If we do not intend to sell the debt security, we determine whether it is more likely than not that we will be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery. If we determine it is more likely than not that we will be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery, we recognize an impairment loss in our results of operations. If we determine it is more likely than not that we will not be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery, we then evaluate whether a credit loss has occurred. We determine whether a credit loss has occurred by comparing the amortized cost of the debt security to the present value of the cash flows we expect to collect. If we expect a cash flow shortfall, we consider that a credit loss has occurred. If we determine that a credit loss has occurred, we consider the impairment to be other than temporary. We then recognize the amount of the impairment loss related to the credit loss in our results of operations, and we recognize the remaining portion of the impairment loss in our other comprehensive income, net of applicable taxes. In addition, we may write down securities in an unrealized loss position based on a number of other factors, including when the fair value of an investment is significantly below its cost, when the financial condition of the issuer of a security has deteriorated, the occurrence of industry, company or geographic events that have negatively impacted the value of a security and rating agency downgrades.

We amortize premiums and discounts on debt securities over the life of the security as an adjustment to yield using the effective interest method. We compute realized investment gains and losses using the specific identification method.

We amortize premiums and discounts for mortgage-backed debt securities using anticipated prepayments.

We account for investments in affiliates using the equity method of accounting. Under the equity method, we record our investment at cost, with adjustments for our share of the affiliate’s earnings and losses as well as changes in the affiliate’s equity due to unrealized gains and losses.

Fair Values of Financial Instruments

We use the following methods and assumptions in estimating our fair value disclosures:

Investments - We present our investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities at estimated fair value. The estimated fair value of a security may differ from the amount that could be realized if we sold the security in a forced transaction. In addition, the valuation of fixed maturity investments is more subjective when markets are less liquid, increasing the potential that the estimated fair value does not reflect the price at which an actual transaction would occur. We utilize nationally recognized independent pricing services to estimate fair values for our fixed maturity and equity investments. We generally obtain one price per security. The pricing services utilize market quotations for fixed maturity and equity securities that have quoted prices in active markets. For fixed maturity securities that generally do not trade on a daily basis, the pricing services prepare estimates of fair value measurements based predominantly on observable market inputs. The pricing services do not use broker quotes in determining the fair values of our investments. Our investment personnel review the estimates of fair value the pricing services provide to determine if the estimates obtained are representative of fair values based upon their general knowledge of the market, their research findings related to unusual fluctuations in value and their comparison of such values to execution prices for similar securities. Our investment personnel monitor the market and are familiar with current trading ranges for similar securities and pricing of specific investments. Our investment personnel review all pricing estimates that we receive from the pricing services against their expectations with respect to pricing based on fair market curves, security ratings, coupon rates, security type and recent trading activity. Our investment personnel review documentation with respect to the pricing services’ pricing methodology that they obtain periodically to determine if the primary pricing sources, market inputs and pricing frequency for various security types are reasonable. We refer to Note 6 - Fair Value Measurements for more information regarding our methods and assumptions in estimating fair values.

Cash and Short-Term Investments - The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheet for these instruments approximate their fair values.

Premiums and Reinsurance Receivables and Payables - The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheet for these instruments related to premiums and paid losses and loss expenses approximate their fair values.

Subordinated Debentures - The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheet for these instruments approximate their fair values.

Revenue Recognition

Our insurance subsidiaries recognize insurance premiums as income over the terms of the policies they issue. Our insurance subsidiaries calculate unearned premiums on a daily pro-rata basis. We recorded an unearned premium liability for the fair value of the net unexpired portion of the insurance policies we acquired in connection with our acquisition of MICO. We recognized this unearned premium liability as income over the terms of MICO’s policies.

Policy Acquisition Costs

We defer our insurance subsidiaries’ policy acquisition costs, consisting primarily of commissions, premium taxes and certain other underwriting costs, reduced by ceding commissions, that vary with and relate directly to the production of business. We amortize these deferred policy acquisition costs over the period in which our insurance subsidiaries earn the premiums. The method we follow in computing deferred policy acquisition costs limits the amount of such deferred costs to their estimated realizable value, which gives effect to the premium to be earned, related investment income, losses and loss expenses and certain other costs we expect to incur as our insurance subsidiaries earn the premium. Estimates in the calculation of policy acquisition costs have not shown material variability because of uncertainties in applying accounting principles or as a result of sensitivities to changes in key assumptions.

Property and Equipment

We report property and equipment at depreciated cost that we compute using the straight-line method based upon estimated useful lives of the assets.

Losses and Loss Expenses

Liabilities for losses and loss expenses are estimates at a given point in time of the amounts an insurer expects to pay with respect to policyholder claims based on facts and circumstances then known. At the time of establishing its estimates, an insurer recognizes that its ultimate liability for losses and loss expenses will exceed or be less than such estimates. Our insurance subsidiaries base their estimates of liabilities for losses and loss expenses on assumptions as to future loss trends and expected claims severity, judicial theories of liability and other factors. However, during the loss adjustment period, our insurance subsidiaries may learn additional facts regarding certain claims, and consequently, it often becomes necessary for our insurance subsidiaries to refine and adjust their estimates of liability. We reflect any adjustments to our insurance subsidiaries’ liabilities for losses and loss expenses in our operating results in the period in which our insurance subsidiaries record the changes in estimates.

Our insurance subsidiaries maintain liabilities for the payment of losses and loss expenses with respect to both reported and unreported claims. Our insurance subsidiaries establish these liabilities for the purpose of covering the ultimate costs of settling all losses, including investigation and litigation costs. Our insurance subsidiaries base the amount of their liability for reported losses primarily upon a case-by-case evaluation of the type of risk involved, knowledge of the circumstances surrounding each claim and the insurance policy provisions relating to the type of loss their policyholder incurred. Our insurance subsidiaries determine the amount of their liability for unreported claims and loss expenses on the basis of historical information by line of insurance. Our insurance subsidiaries account for inflation in the reserving function through analysis of costs and trends and reviews of historical reserving results. Our insurance subsidiaries closely monitor their liabilities and recompute them periodically using new information on reported claims and a variety of statistical techniques. Our insurance subsidiaries do not discount their liabilities for losses.

We recorded a liability for the fair value of the net loss and loss expense reserves we assumed in connection with our acquisition of MICO. We incorporated various factors in determining the fair value of those reserve estimates, including the guarantee against any deficiency in excess of $1.0 million we discuss in Note 4-Business Combinations.

Reserve estimates can change over time because of unexpected changes in assumptions related to our insurance subsidiaries’ external environment and, to a lesser extent, assumptions as to our insurance subsidiaries’ internal operations. For example, our insurance subsidiaries have experienced a decrease in claims frequency on workers’ compensation claims during the past several years while claims severity has gradually increased. These trend changes give rise to greater uncertainty as to the pattern of future loss settlements on workers’ compensation claims. Related uncertainties regarding future trends include the cost of medical technologies and procedures and changes in the utilization of medical procedures. Assumptions related to our insurance subsidiaries’ external environment include the absence of significant changes in tort law and the legal environment that increase liability exposure, consistency in judicial interpretations of insurance coverage and policy provisions and the rate of loss cost inflation. Internal assumptions include consistency in the recording of premium and loss statistics, consistency in the recording of claims, payment and case reserving methodology, accurate measurement of the impact of rate changes and changes in policy provisions, consistency in the quality and characteristics of business written within a given line of business and consistency in reinsurance coverage and collectibility of reinsured losses, among other items. To the extent our insurance subsidiaries determine that underlying factors impacting their assumptions have changed, our insurance subsidiaries attempt to make appropriate adjustments for such changes in their reserves. Accordingly, our insurance subsidiaries’ ultimate liability for unpaid losses and loss expenses will likely differ from the amount recorded.

Our insurance subsidiaries seek to enhance their underwriting results by carefully selecting the product lines they underwrite. Our insurance subsidiaries’ personal lines products include standard and preferred risks in private passenger automobile and homeowners lines. Our insurance subsidiaries’ commercial lines products primarily include business offices, wholesalers, service providers, contractors, artisans and light manufacturing operations. Our insurance subsidiaries have limited exposure to asbestos and other environmental liabilities. Our insurance subsidiaries write no medical malpractice liability risks.

Income Taxes

We currently file a consolidated federal income tax return.

We account for income taxes using the asset and liability method. The objective of the asset and liability method is to establish deferred tax assets and liabilities for the temporary differences between the financial reporting basis and the tax basis of our assets and liabilities at enacted tax rates expected to be in effect when we realize or settle such amounts.

Credit Risk

Our objective is to earn competitive returns by investing in a diversified portfolio of securities. Our portfolio of fixed maturity securities and, to a lesser extent, short-term investments is subject to credit risk. We define this risk as the potential loss in fair value resulting from adverse changes in the borrower’s ability to repay the debt. We manage this risk by performing an analysis of prospective investments and through regular reviews of our portfolio by our investment staff. We also limit the amount of our total investment portfolio that we invest in any one security.

Our insurance subsidiaries provide property and liability insurance coverages through independent insurance agencies located throughout their operating areas. Our insurance subsidiaries bill the majority of this business directly to their policyholders, although our insurance subsidiaries bill a portion of their commercial business through their agents, to whom they extend credit in the normal course of business.

Our insurance subsidiaries have reinsurance agreements with Donegal Mutual and with a number of major unaffiliated reinsurers.

Reinsurance Accounting and Reporting

Our insurance subsidiaries rely upon reinsurance agreements to limit their maximum net loss from large single risks or risks in concentrated areas and to increase their capacity to write insurance. Reinsurance does not relieve our insurance subsidiaries from liability to their respective policyholders. To the extent that a reinsurer cannot pay losses for which it is liable under the terms of a reinsurance agreement with one of our insurance subsidiaries, our insurance subsidiaries retain continued liability for such losses. However, in an effort to reduce the risk of non-payment, our insurance subsidiaries require all of their reinsurers to have an A.M. Best rating of A- or better or, with respect to foreign reinsurers, to have a financial condition that, in the opinion of management, is equivalent to a company with an A.M. Best rating of A- or better. We refer to Note 11 - Reinsurance for more information regarding our reinsurance agreements.

Stock-Based Compensation

We measure all share-based payments to employees, including grants of stock options, using a fair-value-based method and record such expense in our results of operations. In determining the expense we record for stock options granted to directors and employees of our subsidiaries and affiliates other than Donegal Mutual, we estimate the fair value of each option award on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The significant assumptions we utilize in applying the Black-Scholes option pricing model are the risk-free interest rate, expected term, dividend yield and expected volatility.

In 2012, we realized $52,422 in tax benefits upon the exercise of stock options. We did not realize any tax benefits upon the exercise of stock options in 2011 or 2010.

Earnings per Share

We calculate basic earnings per share by dividing net income by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding for the period. Diluted earnings per share reflects the dilution that could occur if securities or other contracts to issue common stock were exercised or converted into common stock.

We have two classes of common stock, which we refer to as Class A common stock and Class B common stock. Our Class A common stock is entitled to cash dividends that are at least 10% higher than those declared and paid on our Class B common stock. Accordingly, we use the two-class method for the computation of earnings per common share. The two-class method is an earnings allocation formula that determines earnings per share separately for each class of common stock based on dividends declared and an allocation of remaining undistributed earnings using a participation percentage that reflects the dividend rights of each class.

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price over the underlying fair value of acquired entities. When completing acquisitions, we seek also to identify separately identifiable intangible assets that we have acquired. We assess goodwill and intangible assets with an indefinite useful life for impairment annually. We also assess goodwill and other intangible assets for impairment upon the occurrence of certain events. In making our assessment, we consider a number of factors including operating results, business plans, economic projections, anticipated future cash flows and current market data. Inherent uncertainties exist with respect to these factors and to our judgment in applying them when we make our assessment. Impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets could result from changes in economic and operating conditions in future periods.

Impact of New Accounting Standards

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Impact of New Accounting Standards [Abstract]

Impact of New Accounting Standards

2 - Impact of New Accounting Standards

In October 2010, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”) issued updated guidance to address the diversity in practice for the accounting for costs associated with acquiring or renewing insurance contracts. This guidance modifies the definition of acquisition costs to specify that a cost must relate directly to the successful acquisition of a new or renewal insurance contract to qualify for deferral. If the application of this guidance would result in the capitalization of acquisition costs that a reporting entity had not previously capitalized, the entity may elect not to capitalize those costs. The updated guidance is effective for periods beginning after December 15, 2011. We adopted this new guidance prospectively in 2012. The amount of acquisition costs we capitalized during 2012 did not change materially from the amount of acquisition costs that we would have capitalized had we applied our previous policy during the period. Our adoption of this new guidance did not have a material impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In May 2011, the FASB issued guidance that eliminates the concepts of in-use and in-exchange when measuring the fair value of all financial instruments. The fair value of a financial asset should be measured on a standalone basis and cannot be measured as part of a group. The new guidance requires several new disclosures including the disclosure of all transfers between Level 1 and Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy and additional disclosures regarding Level 3 assets. This guidance is effective for interim and annual periods beginning on or after December 15, 2011. We adopted this new guidance in 2012. Our adoption of this new guidance did not impact our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In June 2011, the FASB issued new guidance related to the presentation of other comprehensive income. The new guidance provides entities with an option to either replace the income statement with a statement of comprehensive income, which would display both the components of net income and comprehensive in a combined statement, or to present a separate statement of comprehensive income immediately following the income statement. The new guidance does not affect the components of other comprehensive income or the calculation of earnings per share. The new guidance is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2011. The new guidance is to be applied retrospectively with early adoption permitted. We adopted this new guidance in 2012. Our adoption of this new guidance did not impact our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In September 2011, the FASB issued new guidance related to evaluating goodwill for impairment. The new guidance provides entities with the option to perform a qualitative assessment of whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount before applying the quantitative two-step goodwill impairment test. If an entity concludes that it is not more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, it is not required to perform the quantitative two-step goodwill impairment test. Entities also have the option of bypassing the assessment of qualitative factors for any reporting unit in any period and proceed directly to performing the first step of the quantitative two-step goodwill impairment test, as was required prior to the issuance of this new guidance. An entity may begin or resume performing the qualitative assessment in any subsequent period. The new guidance is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2011, with early adoption permitted. We adopted this new guidance in 2011. Our adoption of this new guidance did not impact our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In July 2012, the FASB issued guidance related to evaluating indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment. The new guidance provides entities with the option of performing a qualitative assessment of whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of an indefinite-lived intangible asset is less than its carrying amount. If an entity concludes that it is not more likely than not that the fair value of an indefinite-lived intangible asset is less than its carrying value, it is not required to perform the quantitative impairment test. Entities also have the option of bypassing the qualitative assessment for any indefinite-lived intangible asset in any period and proceed directly to performing the quantitative impairment test. Entities are able to resume performing the qualitative assessment in any subsequent period. This guidance is effective for annual and interim impairment tests performed for fiscal years beginning after September 15, 2012, with early adoption permitted. We adopted this new guidance in 2012. Our adoption of this new guidance did not impact our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for reporting accounting changes and error corrections. It includes the conveyance of information necessary for a user of the Company's financial information to understand all aspects and required disclosure information concerning all changes and error corrections reported in the Company's financial statements for the period.

+ References + Details

Transactions with Affiliates

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Transactions with Affiliates [Abstract]

Transactions with Affiliates

3 - Transactions with Affiliates

Our insurance subsidiaries conduct business and have various agreements with Donegal Mutual that we describe in the following subparagraphs:

a. Reinsurance Pooling and Other Reinsurance Arrangements

Atlantic States, our largest insurance subsidiary, and Donegal Mutual have a pooling agreement under which both companies contribute all of their direct written business to the pool and receive an allocated percentage of their combined underwriting results, excluding certain reinsurance Donegal Mutual assumes from our insurance subsidiaries. Atlantic States has an 80% share of the results of the pool, and Donegal Mutual has a 20% share of the results of the pool. The intent of the pooling agreement is to produce more uniform and stable underwriting results from year to year for each pool participant than they would experience individually and to spread the risk of loss between the participants based on each participant’s relative amount of surplus and relative access to capital. Each participant in the pool has at its disposal the capacity of the entire pool, rather than being limited to policy exposures of a size commensurate with its own capital and surplus.

The following amounts represent reinsurance Atlantic States ceded to the pool during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	132,876,094	$	118,812,725	$	105,376,068
Losses and loss expenses		92,459,147		97,130,846		81,203,625
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		70,572,281		64,214,378		57,783,435
Liability for losses and loss expenses		83,623,652		77,312,645		65,028,781

The following amounts represent reinsurance Atlantic States assumed from the pool during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	298,803,060	$	266,687,610	$	238,308,846
Losses and loss expenses		187,415,893		206,907,170		160,256,348
Unearned premiums		157,140,642		141,880,039		125,322,884
Liability for losses and loss expenses		162,863,045		156,941,512		134,580,026

Donegal Mutual and Le Mars have a quota-share reinsurance agreement whereby Le Mars assumes 100% of the premiums and losses related to certain products Donegal Mutual offers in certain Midwest states, which provide the availability of complementary products to Le Mars’ commercial accounts. Until October 31, 2012, Donegal Mutual and Southern had a quota-share reinsurance agreement whereby Southern assumed 100% of the premiums and losses related to personal lines products Donegal Mutual offers in Virginia through the use of its automated policy quoting and issuance system. The following amounts represent reinsurance Southern and Le Mars assumed from Donegal Mutual pursuant to the quota-share reinsurance agreements during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	22,189,399	$	17,757,409	$	14,516,901
Losses and loss expenses		19,620,587		14,983,405		12,600,094
Unearned premiums		9,926,381		10,225,922		8,124,069
Liability for losses and loss expenses		8,873,592		7,770,053		7,316,879

Donegal Mutual and MICO have a quota-share reinsurance agreement whereby Donegal Mutual assumes 25% of the premiums and losses related to the business of MICO. Donegal Mutual and Peninsula have a quota-share reinsurance agreement whereby Donegal Mutual assumes 100% of the premiums and losses related to the workers’ compensation product line of Peninsula in certain states. The business Donegal Mutual assumes becomes part of the pooling agreement between Donegal Mutual and Atlantic States.

The following amounts represent reinsurance ceded to Donegal Mutual pursuant to these quota-share reinsurance agreements during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	33,046,914	$	22,123,229	$	4,516,313
Losses and loss expenses		22,569,557		16,038,590		3,463,112
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		15,457,605		14,181,338		4,590,424
Liability for losses and loss expenses		18,285,182		11,868,641		4,006,231

Atlantic States, Southern and Le Mars each have a catastrophe reinsurance agreement with Donegal Mutual that provides coverage under any one catastrophic occurrence above a set retention ($2,000,000, $1,500,000 and $500,000 for Atlantic States, Southern and Le Mars, respectively) up to $5,000,000, with a combined retention of $3,000,000 for a catastrophe involving a combination of these subsidiaries. Our insurance subsidiaries recover losses in excess of $5,000,000 for any one catastrophe occurrence under catastrophe reinsurance agreements with unaffiliated reinsurers. Donegal Mutual and Southern have an excess of loss reinsurance agreement in which Donegal Mutual assumes up to $500,000 ($350,000 in 2011 and 2010) of losses in excess of $500,000 ($400,000 in 2011 and 2010).

The following amounts represent reinsurance that our insurance subsidiaries ceded to Donegal Mutual pursuant to these reinsurance agreements during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	12,460,511	$	12,953,452	$	8,110,268
Losses and loss expenses		10,787,850		20,770,637		6,649,775
Liability for losses and loss expenses		2,206,786		3,980,024		3,441,447

The following amounts represent the effect of affiliated reinsurance transactions on net premiums our insurance subsidiaries earned during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012			2011			2010
Assumed	$	320,992,459		$	284,445,019		$	252,825,747
Ceded		(178,383,519	)		(153,889,406	)		(118,002,649	)

Net	$	142,608,940		$	130,555,613		$	134,823,098

The following amounts represent the effect of affiliated reinsurance transactions on net losses and loss expenses our insurance subsidiaries incurred during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012			2011			2010
Assumed	$	207,036,480		$	221,890,575		$	172,856,442
Ceded		(125,816,554	)		(133,940,073	)		(91,316,512	)

Net	$	81,219,926		$	87,950,502		$	81,539,930

b. Expense Sharing

Donegal Mutual provides facilities, management and other services to us and our insurance subsidiaries. Donegal Mutual allocates certain related expenses to Atlantic States in relation to the relative participation of Atlantic States and Donegal Mutual in the pooling agreement. Our insurance subsidiaries other than Atlantic States reimburse Donegal Mutual for their personnel costs and bear their proportionate share of information services costs based on their percentage of the total written premiums of the Donegal Insurance Group. Charges for these services totalled $78,778,333, $64,711,860 and $63,982,793 for 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

c. Lease Agreement

We lease office equipment and automobiles with terms ranging from 3 to 10 years to Donegal Mutual under a 10-year lease agreement dated January 1, 2011.

d. Legal Services

Donald H. Nikolaus, our President and one of our directors, is a partner in the law firm of Nikolaus & Hohenadel. Such firm has served as our general counsel since 1986, principally in connection with the defense of claims litigation arising in Lancaster, Dauphin and York counties of Pennsylvania. We pay such firm its customary fees for such services.

e. Union Community Bank

At December 31, 2012 and 2011, we had $18,806,576 and $10,907,454, respectively, in checking accounts with UCB, a wholly owned subsidiary of DFSC. We earned $1,591, $1,019 and $1,575 in interest on these accounts during 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

Business Combinations

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Business Combinations [Abstract]

Business Combinations

4 - Business Combinations

On December 1, 2010, we acquired all of the outstanding stock of MICO. We accounted for this acquisition as a business combination.

We acquired MICO from West Bend and its other stockholders for a price equal to 122% of MICO’s stockholders’ equity at November 30, 2010, or approximately $42.3 million in cash. We paid $35.1 million to MICO’s stockholders in December 2010 and recorded an additional amount payable at December 31, 2010 of $7.2 million, which we paid pursuant to the terms of our acquisition agreement in the first quarter of 2011. The acquisition of MICO enabled us to extend our insurance business to the state of Michigan. MICO writes various lines of property and casualty insurance and had direct written premiums of $105.4 million and $106.6 million and net premiums earned of $26.9 million and $27.0 million for the years ended December 31, 2010 and 2009, respectively. MICO’s stockholders’ equity and total assets at December 31, 2009 were $32.0 million and $224.5 million, respectively. We recorded goodwill of approximately $4.7 million and other intangible assets of approximately $958,000, none of which are deductible for federal income tax purposes. Pursuant to the terms of our acquisition agreement with West Bend, West Bend has guaranteed us against any deficiency in excess of $1.0 million in the loss and loss expenses of MICO at November 30, 2010. Conversely, we have agreed to return 50% of any redundancy in excess of $1.0 million. Any such deficiency or redundancy will be based on a final actuarial review of the development of such reserves to be conducted three years after November 30, 2010. Based upon a preliminary actuarial review at November 30, 2012, the redundancy in the reserves of MICO at November 30, 2010 was less than $1.0 million. Through December 1, 2010, MICO and West Bend were parties to quota-share reinsurance agreements whereby MICO ceded 75% (80% prior to 2008) of its business to West Bend. MICO and West Bend agreed to terminate the reinsurance agreement in effect at November 30, 2010 on a run-off basis. West Bend’s obligations related to all past reinsurance agreements with MICO remain in effect for all policies effective prior to December 1, 2010. West Bend and MICO entered into a trust agreement on December 1, 2010. Under the terms of the trust agreement, for the sole benefit of MICO, West Bend placed into trust assets with a fair value equal to the amount of unearned premiums and unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses, reduced by any net premium balances not yet paid by MICO, that West Bend had assumed pursuant to such reinsurance agreements at November 30, 2010. The amount of assets required to be held in trust is adjustable monthly based upon the remaining net obligations of West Bend. West Bend may terminate the trust agreement on the earlier of December 1, 2020 or the date when the obligations of West Bend are equal to or less than $5.0 million. At December 31, 2012, West Bend’s net obligations under the reinsurance agreements were approximately $22.6 million, and the fair value of assets held in trust was approximately $26.3 million.

We recorded the MICO assets that we acquired and the MICO liabilities that we assumed at their estimated acquisition date fair value. The following table summarizes the estimated fair value of the net assets we acquired at the date of the MICO acquisition based on purchase price allocations:


(in thousands)
Assets acquired:
Investments	$	68,693
Premiums receivable		27,803
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		25,054
Reinsurance receivable		83,818
Goodwill		4,703
Other intangible assets		958
Other		2,801

Total assets acquired		213,830

Liabilities assumed:
Losses and loss expenses		104,815
Unearned premiums		33,688
Reinsurance balances payable		16,899
Accrued expenses		9,990
Other		6,142

Total liabilities assumed		171,534

Net assets acquired	$	42,296

We recorded goodwill of $4.7 million in connection with the MICO acquisition. The goodwill consists largely of economies of scale we expect to realize from integrating the operations of MICO with the operations of the Donegal Insurance Group and benefits we expect to derive from MICO’s relationships with its independent agents and policyholders. We have evaluated the goodwill for impairment during 2012. We will evaluate the goodwill for impairment annually or upon the occurrence of certain future events.

We operate MICO as a subsidiary and intend to continue to maintain its trade name for the foreseeable future. We have therefore established a trade name intangible asset in the amount of $958,000, which represents the estimated value of the future benefits we will derive from the continued use of the trade name. We will not amortize the trade name intangible asset because we have determined that the trade name intangible asset has an indefinite life. We have evaluated the trade name intangible asset for impairment during 2012. We will evaluate the trade name intangible asset for impairment annually or upon the occurrence of certain future events.

Our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2010 included the operations of MICO from December 1, 2010, the date we acquired it. Effective on December 1, 2010, MICO entered into a 50% quota-share reinsurance agreement with third-party reinsurers and a 25% quota-share reinsurance agreement with Donegal Mutual to replace the 75% quota-share reinsurance agreement MICO maintained with West Bend through November 30, 2010. Our total revenues related to the operations of MICO and Atlantic States’ allocation with respect to Donegal Mutual’s quota-share reinsurance agreement for the period December 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010 were approximately $2.4 million. MICO’s results of operations for the period December 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010 did not significantly impact our consolidated net income for 2010.

The following table presents our unaudited pro forma historical results for the years ended December 31, 2010 and 2009 as if we had acquired MICO at January 1, 2009 and MICO had entered into a 25% quota-share reinsurance agreement with Donegal Mutual on that date:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2010			2009
	(in thousands, except per share data)
Total revenues	$	458,231		$	423,184
Income before income tax benefit		13,619			15,232
Income tax benefit		(741	)		(146	)
Net income		14,360			15,378
Class A earnings per share - basic and diluted		0.58			0.62
Class B earnings per share - basic and diluted		0.52			0.55

Significant pro forma income statement adjustments for the year ended December 31, 2009 included a $3.8 million decrease in premiums earned related to the recognition of the pro forma fair value adjustment associated with the net unearned premium liability at January 1, 2009. We have prepared the unaudited pro forma results above for comparative purposes only. These unaudited pro forma results are not necessarily indicative of the results of operations that actually would have resulted had the acquisition occurred at January 1, 2009, nor are the pro forma results necessarily indicative of future operating results.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for a business combination (or series of individually immaterial business combinations) completed during the period, including background, timing, and recognized assets and liabilities. The disclosure may include leverage buyout transactions (as applicable).

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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Reference 18: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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-Paragraph 51, 52
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 19: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 141R
-Paragraph 67-73
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

+ Details

Investments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Investments [Abstract]

Investments

5 - Investments

The amortized cost and estimated fair values of fixed maturities and equity securities at December 31, 2012 and 2011 are as follows:


	2012
	Amortized Cost		Gross Unrealized Gains		Gross Unrealized Losses		Estimated Fair Value
Held to Maturity
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	1,000,000	$	11,510	$	—	$	1,011,510
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		40,909,132		1,609,211		—		42,518,343
Residential mortgage-backed securities		191,064		14,822		—		205,886

Totals	$	42,100,196	$	1,635,543	$	—	$	43,735,739


	2012
	Amortized Cost		Gross Unrealized Gains		Gross Unrealized Losses		Estimated Fair Value
Available for Sale
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	70,253,846	$	1,101,208	$	43,951	$	71,311,103
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		385,371,983		32,221,045		606,065		416,986,963
Corporate securities		73,941,532		3,522,954		108,709		77,355,777
Residential mortgage-backed securities		125,606,445		3,315,976		66,443		128,855,978

Fixed maturities		655,173,806		40,161,183		825,168		694,509,821
Equity securities		8,663,183		200,823		106,748		8,757,258

Totals	$	663,836,989	$	40,362,006	$	931,916	$	703,267,079


	2011
	Amortized Cost		Gross Unrealized Gains		Gross Unrealized Losses		Estimated Fair Value
Held to Maturity
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	1,000,000	$	53,990	$	—	$	1,053,990
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		56,965,959		2,857,005		—		59,822,964
Corporate securities		249,850		2,756		—		252,606
Residential mortgage-backed securities		273,810		18,986		9		292,787

Totals	$	58,489,619	$	2,932,737	$	9	$	61,422,347


	2011
	Amortized Cost		Gross Unrealized Gains		Gross Unrealized Losses		Estimated Fair Value
Available for Sale
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	59,431,789	$	1,545,768	$	—	$	60,977,557
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		372,663,210		26,252,161		38,789		398,876,582
Corporate securities		62,836,703		1,805,109		528,163		64,113,649
Residential mortgage-backed securities		119,367,152		3,306,932		43,694		122,630,390

Fixed maturities		614,298,854		32,909,970		610,646		646,598,178
Equity securities		7,238,803		606,440		407,705		7,437,538

Totals	$	621,537,657	$	33,516,410	$	1,018,351	$	654,035,716

At December 31, 2012, our holdings of obligations of states and political subdivisions included general obligation bonds with an aggregate fair value of $358.5 million and an amortized cost of $332.4 million. Our holdings also included special revenue bonds with an aggregate fair value of $101.0 million and an amortized cost of $93.9 million. With respect to both categories, we held no securities of any issuer that comprised more than 10% of the category at December 31, 2012. Education bonds and water and sewer utility bonds represented 54% and 19%, respectively, of our total investments in special revenue bonds based on their carrying values at December 31, 2012. Many of the issuers of the special revenue bonds we held at December 31, 2012 have the authority to impose ad valorem taxes. In that respect, many of the special revenue bonds we held are similar to general obligation bonds.

At December 31, 2011, our holdings of obligations of states and political subdivisions included general obligation bonds with an aggregate fair value of $372.2 million and an amortized cost of $348.4 million. Our holdings also included special revenue bonds with an aggregate fair value of $86.5 million and an amortized cost of $81.0 million. With respect to both categories, we held no securities of any issuer that comprised more than 10% of the category at December 31, 2011. Education bonds and water and sewer utility bonds represented 59% and 17%, respectively, of our total investments in special revenue bonds based on their carrying values at December 31, 2011. Many of the issuers of the special revenue bonds we held at December 31, 2011 have the authority to impose ad valorem taxes. In that respect, many of the special revenue bonds we held are similar to general obligation bonds.

We set forth below the amortized cost and estimated fair value of fixed maturities at December 31, 2012 by contractual maturity. Expected maturities may differ from contractual maturities because borrowers may have the right to call or prepay obligations with or without call or prepayment penalties.


	Amortized Cost		Estimated Fair Value
	Amortized Cost		Estimated Fair Value
Held to maturity
Due in one year or less	$	1,000,000	$	1,011,510
Due after one year through five years		31,815,724		32,965,749
Due after five years through ten years		9,093,408		9,552,594
Due after ten years		—		—
Residential mortgage-backed securities		191,064		205,886

Total held to maturity	$	42,100,196	$	43,735,739


Available for sale
Due in one year or less	$	8,942,472	$	9,003,925
Due after one year through five years		62,233,761		64,199,249
Due after five years through ten years		181,558,392		192,859,072
Due after ten years		276,832,736		299,591,597
Residential mortgage-backed securities		125,606,445		128,855,978

Total available for sale	$	655,173,806	$	694,509,821

The amortized cost of fixed maturities on deposit with various regulatory authorities at December 31, 2012 and 2011 amounted to $10,565,116 and $10,629,319, respectively.

Investments in affiliates consisted of the following at December 31, 2012 and 2011:


	2012		2011
DFSC	$	36,770,530	$	31,857,246
Other		465,000		465,000

Total	$	37,235,530	$	32,322,246

We account for investments in our affiliates using the equity method of accounting. Under this method, we record our investment at cost, with adjustments for our share of our affiliates’ earnings and losses as well as changes in our affiliates’ equity due to unrealized gains and losses. Our investments in affiliates include our 48.2% ownership interest in DFSC. In May 2011, DFSC merged with UNNF, with DFSC as the surviving company in the merger. Under the merger agreement, Province Bank FSB, which DFSC owned, and Union National Community Bank, which UNNF owned, also merged and began doing business as UCB. Donegal Mutual contributed $22.1 million and we contributed $20.6 million to DFSC as additional capital to facilitate the mergers. We made an additional equity investment in DFSC in the amount of $100,000 during 2012.

We include our share of DFSC’s net income in our results of operations. We have compiled the following summary financial information for DFSC at December 31, 2012 and 2011 from the financial statements of DFSC.


	December 31,
	2012		2011
Balance sheets:
Total assets	$	509,670,100	$	532,938,460


Total liabilities	$	433,490,583	$	466,940,425
Stockholders’ equity		76,179,517		65,998,035


Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	509,670,100	$	532,938,460


	Year Ended December 31,
	2012		2011		2010
Income statements:
Net income (loss)	$	9,401,001	$	4,196,054	$	(556,528	)

Other comprehensive income (loss) in our statements of comprehensive income includes net unrealized gains (losses) of $138,771, $479,401 and ($32,129) for 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively, representing our share of DFSC’s unrealized investment gains or losses.

Other investment in affiliates represents our investment in statutory trusts that hold our subordinated debentures that we discuss in Note 10 - Borrowings.

We derive net investment income, consisting primarily of interest and dividends, from the following sources:


	2012			2011			2010
Fixed maturities	$	24,642,897		$	25,044,316		$	23,995,220
Equity securities		85,905			162,934			42,869
Short-term investments		34,482			57,296			91,665
Other		44,874			48,588			46,095

Investment income		24,808,158			25,313,134			24,175,849
Investment expenses		(4,639,239	)		(4,454,955	)		(4,226,135	)

Net investment income	$	20,168,919		$	20,858,179		$	19,949,714

We present below gross realized gains and losses from investments and the change in the difference between fair value and cost of investments:


	2012			2011			2010
Gross realized gains:
Fixed maturities	$	6,730,331		$	4,959,707		$	4,136,455
Equity securities		926,053			8,760,511			1,791,585

		7,656,384			13,720,218			5,928,040

Gross realized losses:
Fixed maturities		42,135			163,316			533,918
Equity securities		754,810			1,275,635			998,402

		796,945			1,438,951			1,532,320

Net realized gains	$	6,859,439		$	12,281,267		$	4,395,720

Change in difference between fair value and cost of investments:
Fixed maturities	$	5,739,506		$	29,646,545		$	(11,571,194	)
Equity securities		(104,660	)		(7,459,314	)		1,547,487

Totals	$	5,634,846		$	22,187,231		$	(10,023,707	)

We held fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses representing declines that we considered temporary at December 31, 2012 as follows:


	Less than 12 months				12 months or longer
	Fair Value		Unrealized Losses		Fair Value		Unrealized Losses
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	12,308,333	$	43,951	$	—	$	—
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		22,134,226		606,065		—		—
Corporate securities		12,271,750		79,136		2,958,520		29,573
Residential mortgage-backed securities		22,491,562		66,443		—		—
Equity securities		2,226,050		106,748		—		—

Totals	$	71,431,921	$	902,343	$	2,958,520	$	29,573

We held fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses representing declines that we considered temporary at December 31, 2011 as follows:


	Less than 12 months				12 months or longer
	Fair Value		Unrealized Losses		Fair Value		Unrealized Losses
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	—
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		1,638,135		17,390		540,062		21,400
Corporate securities		10,101,753		528,164		—		—
Residential mortgage-backed securities		7,411,682		43,692		626		9
Equity securities		4,083,863		407,705		—		—

Totals	$	23,235,433	$	996,951	$	540,688	$	21,409

We make estimates concerning the valuation of our investments and the recognition of other-than-temporary declines in the value of our investments. For equity securities, we write down the investment to its fair value, and we reflect the amount of the write-down as a realized loss in our results of operations when we consider the decline in value of an individual investment to be other than temporary. We individually monitor all investments for other-than-temporary declines in value. Generally, we assume there has been an other-than-temporary decline in value if an individual equity security has depreciated in value by more than 20% of original cost and has been in such an unrealized loss position for more than six months. We held seven equity securities that were in an unrealized loss position at December 31, 2012. Based upon our analysis of general market conditions and underlying factors impacting these equity securities, we considered these declines in value to be temporary. With respect to a debt security that is in an unrealized loss position, we first assess if we intend to sell the debt security. If we determine we intend to sell the debt security, we recognize the impairment loss in our results of operations. If we do not intend to sell the debt security, we determine whether it is more likely than not that we will be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery. If we determine it is more likely than not that we will be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery, we recognize an impairment loss in our results of operations. If we determine it is more likely than not that we will not be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery, we then evaluate whether a credit loss has occurred. We determine whether a credit loss has occurred by comparing the amortized cost of the debt security to the present value of the cash flows we expect to collect. If we expect a cash flow shortfall, we consider that a credit loss has occurred. If we determine that a credit loss has occurred, we consider the impairment to be other than temporary. We then recognize the amount of the impairment loss related to the credit loss in our results of operations, and we recognize the remaining portion of the impairment loss in our other comprehensive income, net of applicable taxes. In addition, we may write down securities in an unrealized loss position based on a number of other factors, including when the fair value of an investment is significantly below its cost, when the financial condition of the issuer of a security has deteriorated, the occurrence of industry, company or geographic events that have negatively impacted the value of a security and rating agency downgrades. We held 46 debt securities that were in an unrealized loss position at December 31, 2012. Based upon our analysis of general market conditions and underlying factors impacting these debt securities, we considered these declines in value to be temporary.

We did not recognize any impairment losses in 2012, 2011 or 2010. We had no sales or transfers from the held to maturity portfolio in 2012, 2011 or 2010. We have no derivative instruments or hedging activities.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for investments in certain debt and equity securities.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 320
-Glossary Debt Security
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6509901

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
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-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6379141&loc=d3e15032-111544

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Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
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-Glossary Equity Security
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6511694

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Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 115
-Paragraph 3, 19, 20, 21, 22, 137
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

+ Details

Fair Value Measurements

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Fair Value Measurements [Abstract]

Fair Value Measurements

6 - Fair Value Measurements

We account for financial assets using a framework that establishes a hierarchy that ranks the quality and reliability of inputs, or assumptions, used in the determination of fair value and we classify financial assets and liabilities carried at fair value in one of the following three categories:

Level 1 - quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities;

Level 2 - directly or indirectly observable inputs other than Level 1 quoted prices; and

Level 3 - unobservable inputs not corroborated by market data.

For investments that have quoted market prices in active markets, we use the quoted market price as fair value and include these investments in Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy. We classify publicly traded equity securities as Level 1. When quoted market prices in active markets are not available, we base fair values on quoted market prices of comparable instruments or price estimates we obtain from independent pricing services. We classify our fixed maturity investments as Level 2. Our fixed maturity investments consist of U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies, obligations of states and political subdivisions, corporate securities and residential mortgage-backed securities.

We present our investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities at estimated fair value. The estimated fair value of a security may differ from the amount that could be realized if we sold the security in a forced transaction. In addition, the valuation of fixed maturity investments is more subjective when markets are less liquid, increasing the potential that the estimated fair value does not reflect the price at which an actual transaction would occur. We utilize nationally recognized independent pricing services to estimate fair values or obtain market quotations for substantially all of our fixed maturity and equity investments. We generally obtain one price per security. The pricing services utilize market quotations for fixed maturity and equity securities that have quoted prices in active markets. For fixed maturity securities that generally do not trade on a daily basis, the pricing services prepare estimates of fair value measurements based predominantly on observable market inputs. The pricing services do not use broker quotes in determining the fair values of our investments. Our investment personnel review the estimates of fair value the pricing services provide to determine if the estimates we obtain are representative of fair values based upon their general knowledge of the market, their research findings related to unusual fluctuations in value and their comparison of such values to execution prices for similar securities. Our investment personnel monitor the market and are familiar with current trading ranges for similar securities and pricing of specific investments. Our investment personnel review all pricing estimates that we receive from the pricing services against their expectations with respect to pricing based on fair market curves, security ratings, coupon rates, security type and recent trading activity. Our investment personnel review documentation with respect to the pricing services’ pricing methodology that they obtain periodically to determine if the primary pricing sources, market inputs and pricing frequency for various security types are reasonable. At December 31, 2012 and 2011, we received one estimate per security from one of the pricing services, and we priced substantially all of our Level 1 and Level 2 investments using those prices. In our review of the estimates the pricing services provided at December 31, 2012 and 2011, we did not identify any discrepancies, and we did not make any adjustments to the estimates the pricing services provided.

We present our cash and short-term investments at estimated fair value. The carrying values in the balance sheet for premium receivables and reinsurance receivables and payables for premiums and paid losses and loss expenses approximate their fair values. The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheet for our subordinated debentures and borrowings under line of credit approximate their fair values. We classify these items as Level 3. We evaluate our assets and liabilities on a recurring basis to determine the appropriate level at which to classify them for each reporting period.

We evaluate our assets and liabilities on a regular basis to determine the appropriate level at which to classify them for each reporting period. Based on our review of the methodology and summary of inputs used by the pricing services, we have concluded that our Level 1 and Level 2 investments were classified properly at December 31, 2012 and 2011.

The following table presents our fair value measurements for our investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities at December 31, 2012:


	Fair Value Measurements Using
	Fair Value		Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1)		Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	71,311,103	$	—	$	71,311,103	$	—
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		416,986,963		—		416,986,963		—
Corporate securities		77,355,777		—		77,355,777		—
Residential mortgage-backed securities		128,855,978		—		128,855,978		—
Equity securities		8,757,258		5,365,721		3,391,537		—

Totals	$	703,267,079	$	5,365,721	$	697,901,358	$	—

The following table presents our fair value measurements for our investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities at December 31, 2011:


	Fair Value Measurements Using
	Fair Value		Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1)		Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	60,977,557	$	—	$	60,977,557	$	—
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		398,876,582		—		398,876,582		—
Corporate securities		64,113,649		—		64,113,649		—
Residential mortgage-backed securities		122,630,390		—		122,630,390		—
Equity securities		7,437,538		6,178,136		1,259,402		—

Totals	$	654,035,716	$	6,178,136	$	647,857,580	$	—

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

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-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 157
-Paragraph 32, 33, 34
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 13: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 107
-Paragraph 3, 10, 14, 15
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

+ Details

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs / Reinsurance [Abstract]

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs

7 - Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs

Changes in our insurance subsidiaries’ deferred policy acquisition costs are as follows:


	2012			2011			2010
Balance, January 1	$	36,424,955		$	34,445,579		$	32,844,179
Acquisition costs deferred		78,010,742			70,550,376			67,955,400
Amortization charged to earnings		(74,314,000	)		(68,571,000	)		(66,354,000	)

Balance, December 31	$	40,121,697		$	36,424,955		$	34,445,579

- Definition

Disclosure of accounting policy for capitalizing costs incurred to write or acquire insurance contracts, the basis for and methodology for capitalizing such costs, the accounting for such deferred acquisition costs (DAC) when modifications or internal replacements of related insurance contracts occur and the effect on results of operations, and the methodology and amount of amortization. This disclosure addresses the nature, type, and amount of capitalized costs incurred to write or acquire insurance contracts.

+ References + Details

Property and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Property and Equipment [Abstract]

Property and Equipment

8 - Property and Equipment

Property and equipment at December 31, 2012 and 2011 consisted of the following:


	2012			2011			Estimated Useful Life
Office equipment	$	8,863,377		$	8,347,493		5-15 years
Automobiles		2,010,762			2,111,218		3 years
Real estate		5,356,705			5,016,722		15-50 years
Software		2,717,206			2,316,617		5 years

		18,948,050			17,792,050
Accumulated depreciation		(12,994,217	)		(11,637,667	)

	$	5,953,833		$	6,154,383

Depreciation expense for 2012, 2011 and 2010 amounted to $944,632, $1.0 million and $1.2 million, respectively.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for long-lived, physical assets that are used in the normal conduct of business to produce goods and services and not intended for resale. Examples include land, buildings, machinery and equipment, and other types of furniture and equipment including, but not limited to, office equipment, furniture and fixtures, and computer equipment and software. This disclosure may include property plant and equipment accounting policies and methodology, a schedule of property, plant and equipment gross, additions, deletions, transfers and other changes, depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, net, accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization expense and useful lives, income statement disclosures, assets held for sale and public utility disclosures.

+ References + Details

Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses [Abstract]

Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses

9 - Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses

The establishment of an appropriate liability for losses and loss expenses is an inherently uncertain process, and we can provide no assurance that our insurance subsidiaries’ ultimate liability will not exceed their loss and loss expense reserves and have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. Furthermore, we cannot predict the timing, frequency and extent of adjustments to our insurance subsidiaries’ estimated future liabilities, because the historical conditions and events that serve as a basis for our insurance subsidiaries’ estimates of ultimate claim costs may change. As is the case for substantially all property and casualty insurance companies, our insurance subsidiaries have found it necessary in the past to increase their estimated future liabilities for losses and loss expenses in certain periods, and, in other periods, their estimates have exceeded their actual liabilities. Changes in our insurance subsidiaries’ estimate of their liability for losses and loss expenses generally reflect actual payments and their evaluation of information received since the prior reporting date.

We summarize activity in our insurance subsidiaries’ liability for losses and loss expenses as follows:


	2012			2011			2010
Balance at January 1	$	442,407,615		$	383,318,672		$	263,598,844
Less reinsurance recoverable		(199,392,836	)		(165,422,373	)		(83,336,726	)

Net balance at January 1		243,014,779			217,896,299			180,262,118

Acquisition of MICO		—			—			26,960,063

Incurred related to:
Current year		325,275,882			340,671,237			277,193,930
Prior years		7,595,702			(168,460	)		(2,885,072	)

Total incurred		332,871,584			340,502,777			274,308,858

Paid related to:
Current year		205,876,331			219,183,102			179,069,304
Prior years		119,074,197			96,201,195			84,565,436

Total paid		324,950,528			315,384,297			263,634,740

Net balance at December 31		250,935,835			243,014,779			217,896,299
Plus reinsurance recoverable		207,891,560			199,392,836			165,422,373

Balance at December 31	$	458,827,395		$	442,407,615		$	383,318,672

Our insurance subsidiaries recognized an increase (decrease) in their liability for losses and loss expenses of prior years of $7.6 million, ($168,460) and ($2.9) million in 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively. Our insurance subsidiaries made no significant changes in their reserving philosophy, key reserving assumptions or claims management personnel, and have made no significant offsetting changes in estimates that increased or decreased their loss and loss expense reserves in these years. The 2012 development represented 3.1% of the December 31, 2011 net carried reserves and resulted primarily from higher-than-expected severity in the private passenger automobile liability and workers’ compensation lines of business in accident years prior to 2012. The majority of the 2012 development related to increases in the liability for losses and loss expenses of prior years for Atlantic States and Southern. The 2011 development represented an immaterial percentage of the December 31, 2010 net carried reserves. The 2010 development represented 1.6% of the December 31, 2009 net carried reserves and resulted primarily from lower-than-expected severity in the private passenger automobile liability and homeowners lines of business in accident years prior to 2009.

Borrowings

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Borrowings [Abstract]

Borrowings

10 - Borrowings

Lines of Credit

In June 2012, we renewed our existing credit agreement with Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company (“M&T”) relating to a $60.0 million unsecured, revolving line of credit that expires in July 2015. We have the right to request a one-year extension of the credit agreement as of each anniversary date of the agreement. In December 2010 and March 2011, we borrowed $35.0 million and $3.5 million, respectively, in connection with our acquisition of MICO. In May 2011, we borrowed $19.0 million in connection with the merger of UNNF with and into DFSC. At December 31, 2012, we had $52.0 million in outstanding borrowings and had the ability to borrow an additional $8.0 million at an interest rate equal to M&T’s current prime rate or the then current LIBOR rate plus 2.25%, depending on our leverage ratio. The interest rate on our outstanding borrowings is adjustable quarterly. At December 31, 2012 , the interest rate on our outstanding borrowings was 2.46%. We pay a fee of 0.2% per annum on the loan commitment amount regardless of usage. The credit agreement requires our compliance with certain covenants, which include minimum levels of our net worth, leverage ratio and statutory surplus and the A.M. Best ratings of our insurance subsidiaries. We complied with all requirements of the credit agreement during the year ended December 31, 2012.

MICO has an agreement with the Federal Home Loan Bank (“FHLB”) of Indianapolis. Through its membership, MICO has the ability to issue debt to the FHLB of Indianapolis in exchange for cash advances. There were no outstanding borrowings at December 31, 2012 or 2011. The table below presents the amount of FHLB of Indianapolis stock MICO purchased, collateral pledged and assets related to MICO’s agreement at December 31, 2012.


FHLB stock purchased and owned as part of the agreement	$	252,100
Collateral pledged, at par (carrying value $3,946,091)		4,450,000
Borrowing capacity currently available		3,493,664

Atlantic States has an agreement with the FHLB of Pittsburgh. Through its membership, Atlantic States has the ability to issue debt to the FHLB of Pittsburgh in exchange for cash advances. There were no outstanding borrowings at December 31, 2012 or 2011. The table below presents the amount of FHLB of Pittsburgh stock Atlantic States purchased, collateral pledged and assets related to Atlantic States’ agreement at December 31, 2012.


FHLB stock purchased and owned as part of the agreement	$	256,400
Collateral pledged, at par		—
Borrowing capacity currently available		—

During 2013, Atlantic States issued secured debt in the principal amount of $15.0 million to the FHLB of Pittsburgh in exchange for cash advances in the amount of $15.0 million. Atlantic States then provided intercompany loans to us in the principal amount of $15.0 million to fund our prepayment of our subordinated debentures, as we discuss below.

Subordinated Debentures

On October 29, 2003, we received $10.0 million in net proceeds from the issuance of subordinated debentures. The debentures were scheduled to mature on October 29, 2033 and were callable at our option, at par. The debentures carried an interest rate equal to the three-month LIBOR rate plus 3.85%. At December 31, 2012, the interest rate on these debentures was 4.16%. At December 31, 2012 and 2011, our consolidated balance sheets included an investment in a statutory trust of $310,000 and subordinated debentures of $10.3 million related to this transaction. On January 28, 2013, we prepaid these subordinated debentures in full and liquidated our investment in the statutory trust.

On May 24, 2004, we received $5.0 million in net proceeds from the issuance of subordinated debentures. The debentures were scheduled to mature on May 24, 2034 and were callable at our option, at par. The debentures carried an interest rate equal to the three-month LIBOR rate plus 3.85%. At December 31, 2012, the interest rate on these debentures was 4.16%. At December 31, 2012 and 2011, our consolidated balance sheets included an investment in a statutory trust of $155,000 and subordinated debentures of $5.2 million related to this transaction. On February 25, 2013, we prepaid these subordinated debentures in full and liquidated our investment in the statutory trust.

In January 2002, West Bend purchased a surplus note from MICO for $5.0 million to increase MICO’s statutory surplus. On December 1, 2010, Donegal Mutual purchased the surplus note from West Bend at face value. The surplus note carries an interest rate of 5.00%, and any repayment of principal or interest requires prior insurance regulatory approval. Upon receipt of regulatory approval, MICO paid $250,000 in interest to Donegal Mutual during each of 2012 and 2011.

Reinsurance

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs / Reinsurance [Abstract]

Reinsurance

11 - Reinsurance

Unaffiliated Reinsurers

Our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual purchase certain third-party reinsurance on a combined basis. Le Mars, MICO, Peninsula and Sheboygan also have separate third-party reinsurance programs that provide certain coverage that is commensurate with their relative size and exposures. Our insurance subsidiaries use several different reinsurers, all of which, consistent with the requirements of our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual, have an A.M. Best rating of A- (Excellent) or better, or, with respect to foreign reinsurers, have a financial condition that, in the opinion of our management, is equivalent to a company with at least an A- rating from A.M. Best. The external reinsurance our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual purchase includes “excess of loss reinsurance,” under which their losses are automatically reinsured, through a series of contracts, over a set retention (generally $1.0 million for 2012 and $750,000 prior to 2012), and “catastrophic reinsurance,” under which they recover, through a series of contracts, 90% to 100% of an accumulation of many losses resulting from a single event, including natural disasters, over a set retention (generally $5.0 million). For property insurance, our insurance subsidiaries had excess of loss treaties that provided for coverage up to $5.0 million per loss. For liability insurance, our insurance subsidiaries had excess of loss treaties that provided for coverage up to $40.0 million per occurrence. For workers’ compensation insurance, our insurance subsidiaries had excess of loss treaties that provided for coverage up to $10.0 million on any one life. Our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual had property catastrophe coverage through a series of layered treaties up to aggregate losses of $135.0 million for any single event. As many as 20 reinsurers provided coverage on any one treaty with no reinsurer taking more than 36.0% of any one treaty. The amount of coverage provided under each of these types of reinsurance depends upon the amount, nature, size and location of the risks being reinsured. Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries also purchased facultative reinsurance to cover exposures from losses that exceeded the limits provided by the treaty reinsurance Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries purchased. In order to write automobile insurance in the State of Michigan, MICO is required to be a member of the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association (“MCCA”). The MCCA provides reinsurance to MICO for personal automobile and commercial automobile personal injury claims in the State of Michigan over a set retention.

Through December 1, 2010, MICO and West Bend were parties to quota-share reinsurance agreements whereby MICO ceded 75% of its business to West Bend. MICO and West Bend agreed to terminate the reinsurance agreement in effect at November 30, 2010 on a run-off basis. West Bend’s obligations related to all past reinsurance agreements with MICO remain in effect for all policies effective prior to December 1, 2010 as we discuss in Note 4-Business Combinations.

MICO maintains a quota-share reinsurance agreement with third-party reinsurers to reduce its net exposures. Effective from December 1, 2010 to December 31, 2011, the quota-share reinsurance percentage was 50%. Effective January 1, 2012, MICO reduced the quota-share reinsurance percentage from 50% to 40%. Effective January 1, 2013, MICO reduced the quota-share reinsurance percentage from 40% to 30%.

The following amounts represent ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums written	$	76,736,510	$	80,265,127	$	24,357,938
Premiums earned		79,680,782		88,297,408		26,551,687
Losses and loss expenses		56,179,284		82,836,893		19,764,441
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		25,126,276		28,054,302		26,991,912
Liability for losses and loss expenses		103,775,940		106,231,527		92,945,915

Total Reinsurance

The following amounts represent our total ceded reinsurance transactions with both affiliated and unaffiliated reinsurers during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	258,064,301	$	242,186,814	$	144,554,336
Losses and loss expenses		181,995,838		216,776,966		111,080,953
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		111,156,162		106,450,018		89,365,771
Liability for losses and loss expenses		207,891,560		199,392,836		165,442,373

The following amounts represent the effect of reinsurance on premiums written for 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012			2011			2010
Direct	$	419,811,847		$	397,810,566		$	279,627,255
Assumed		339,389,274			306,416,861			262,574,572
Ceded		(262,754,201	)		(250,176,390	)		(150,679,539	)

Net premiums written	$	496,446,920		$	454,051,037		$	391,522,288

The following amounts represent the effect of reinsurance on premiums earned for 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012			2011			2010
Direct	$	408,846,530		$	385,737,801		$	269,394,549
Assumed		324,219,993			287,919,197			253,189,916
Ceded		(258,064,301	)		(242,186,814	)		(144,554,336	)

Net premiums earned	$	475,002,222		$	431,470,184		$	378,030,129

- Definition

The entire disclosure pertaining to the existence, magnitude and information about insurance that has been ceded to or assumed from another insurance company, including the methodologies and assumptions used in determining recorded amounts.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 4
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6480758&loc=d3e6816-158387

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 605
-Section 50
-Paragraph 3
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6486672&loc=d3e27374-158547

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 210
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.7-03.6,13)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6879938&loc=d3e572229-122910

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 20
-Section 50
-Paragraph 3
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6480758&loc=d3e6811-158387

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 605
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6486672&loc=d3e27261-158547

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 605
-Section 55
-Paragraph 13
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6588590&loc=d3e27795-158548

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 605
-Section 55
-Paragraph 10
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6588590&loc=d3e27703-158548

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 310
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6485557&loc=d3e21549-158491

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 113
-Paragraph 120
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 113
-Paragraph 27
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher AICPA
-Name Statement of Position (SOP)
-Number 92-5
-Paragraph 19
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 12: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 03
-Paragraph 6
-Article 7

Reference 13: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 03
-Paragraph 13
-Article 7

+ Details

Income Taxes

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Income Taxes [Abstract]

Income Taxes

12 - Income Taxes

Our provision for income tax consists of the following:


	2012		2011			2010
Current	$	3,614,390	$	(1,269,775	)	$	757,400
Deferred		1,151,250		(5,922,491	)		(2,380,430	)

Federal tax (benefit) provision	$	4,765,640	$	(7,192,266	)	$	(1,623,030	)

Our effective tax rate is different from the amount computed at the statutory federal rate of 35% for 2012, 2011 and 2010. The reasons for such difference and the related tax effects are as follows:


	2012			2011			2010
Income (loss) before income taxes	$	27,858,260		$	(6,739,313	)	$	9,844,149

Computed “expected” taxes (benefit)		9,750,391			(2,358,760	)		3,445,452
Tax-exempt interest		(5,824,281	)		(6,038,463	)		(6,183,795	)
Proration		869,551			905,326			923,071
Other, net		(30,021	)		299,631			192,242

Federal income tax (benefit) provision	$	4,765,640		$	(7,192,266	)	$	(1,623,030	)

The tax effects of temporary differences that give rise to significant portions of the deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities at December 31, 2012 and 2011 are as follows:


	2012			2011
Deferred tax assets:
Unearned premium	$	17,613,415		$	16,113,291
Loss reserves		7,275,091			7,339,644
Net operating loss carryforward		1,942,128			4,473,462
Net operating loss carryforward - Le Mars		1,797,194			2,191,532
Alternative minimum tax credit carryforward		7,964,853			4,294,879
Other		1,413,285			634,885

Total gross deferred assets		38,005,966			35,047,693
Less valuation allowance		(440,778	)		(440,778	)

Net deferred tax assets		37,565,188			34,606,915

Deferred tax liabilities:
Deferred policy acquisition costs		14,042,594			12,750,631
Net unrealized gains		14,212,465			11,711,531
Other		3,042,593			225,033

Total gross deferred tax liabilities		31,297,652			24,687,195

Net deferred tax asset	$	6,267,536		$	9,919,720

We provide a valuation allowance when we believe it is more likely than not that we will not realize some portion of the tax asset. At December 31, 2012 and 2011, we established a valuation allowance of $440,778, related to a portion of the net operating loss carryforward of Le Mars that we acquired on January 1, 2004. We determined that we were not required to establish a valuation allowance for the other net deferred tax assets of $37.6 million and $34.6 million at December 31, 2012 and 2011, respectively, since it is more likely than not that we will realize these deferred tax assets through reversals of existing temporary differences, future taxable income, carrybacks to taxable income in prior years and the implementation of tax-planning strategies.

Tax years 2009 through 2012 remained open for examination at December 31, 2012. At December 31, 2012, we had a net operating loss carryforward of $5.5 million, which is available to offset our future taxable income. This amount will expire in 2031 if not utilized. The net operating loss carryforward of $5.1 million from Le Mars will begin to expire in 2020 if not utilized and is subject to an annual limitation of approximately $376,000. We also had an alternative minimum tax credit carryforward of $8.0 million with an indefinite life.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for income taxes. Disclosures may include net deferred tax liability or asset recognized in an enterprise's statement of financial position, net change during the year in the total valuation allowance, approximate tax effect of each type of temporary difference and carryforward that gives rise to a significant portion of deferred tax liabilities and deferred tax assets, utilization of a tax carryback, and tax uncertainties information.

+ References

+ Details

Stockholders' Equity

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Stockholders' Equity [Abstract]

Stockholders' Equity

13 - Stockholders’ Equity

On April 19, 2001, our stockholders approved an amendment to our certificate of incorporation. Among other things, the amendment reclassified our common stock as Class B common stock and effected a one-for-three reverse split of our Class B common stock effective April 19, 2001. The amendment also authorized a new class of common stock with one-tenth of a vote per share designated as Class A common stock. Our board of directors also declared a dividend of two shares of Class A common stock for each share of Class B common stock, after the one-for-three reverse split, held of record at the close of business April 19, 2001.

Each share of Class A common stock outstanding at the time of the declaration of any dividend or other distribution payable in cash upon the shares of Class B common stock is entitled to a dividend or distribution payable at the same time and to stockholders of record on the same date in an amount at least 10% greater than any dividend declared upon each share of Class B common stock. In the event of our merger or consolidation with or into another entity, the holders of Class A common stock and the holders of Class B common stock are entitled to receive the same per share consideration in such merger or consolidation. In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding-up, any assets available to common stockholders will be distributed pro-rata to the holders of Class A common stock and Class B common stock after payment of all of our obligations.

In February 2009, our board of directors authorized a share repurchase program, pursuant to which we may purchase up to 300,000 shares of our Class A common stock at market prices prevailing from time to time in the open market subject to the provisions of Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) Rule 10b-18 and in privately negotiated transactions. We purchased 135,064 and 119,257 shares of our Class A common stock under this program during 2012 and 2011, respectively. At December 31, 2012, we had the authority remaining to purchase 28,308 shares under this program.

At December 31, 2012, our treasury stock consisted of 916,622 and 72,465 shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock, respectively. At December 31, 2011, our treasury stock consisted of 781,558 and 72,465 shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock, respectively.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for shareholders' equity, comprised of portions attributable to the parent entity and noncontrolling interest, if any, including other comprehensive income (as applicable). Including, but not limited to: (1) balances of common stock, preferred stock, additional paid-in capital, other capital and retained earnings; (2) accumulated balance for each classification of other comprehensive income and total amount of comprehensive income; (3) amount and nature of changes in separate accounts, including the number of shares authorized and outstanding, number of shares issued upon exercise and conversion, and for other comprehensive income, the adjustments for reclassifications to net income; (4) rights and privileges of each class of stock authorized; (5) basis of treasury stock, if other than cost, and amounts paid and accounting treatment for treasury stock purchased significantly in excess of market; (6) dividends paid or payable per share and in the aggregate for each class of stock for each period presented; (7) dividend restrictions and accumulated preferred dividends in arrears (in aggregate and per share amount); (8) retained earnings appropriations or restrictions, such as dividend restrictions; (9) impact of change in accounting principle, initial adoption of new accounting principle and correction of an error in previously issued financial statements; (10) shares held in trust for Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP); (11) deferred compensation related to issuance of capital stock; (12) note received for issuance of stock; (13) unamortized discount on shares; (14) description, terms, and number of warrants or rights outstanding; (15) shares under subscription and subscription receivables, effective date of new retained earnings after quasi-reorganization and deficit eliminated by quasi-reorganization and, for a period of at least ten years after the effective date, the point in time from which the new retained dates; and (16) retroactive effective of subsequent change in capital structure.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 235
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.4-08.(d),(e))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6881521&loc=d3e23780-122690

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 4
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6928386&loc=d3e21484-112644

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 310
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (SAB TOPIC 4.E)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6228006&loc=d3e74512-122707

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 5
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6928386&loc=d3e21488-112644

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 210
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.5-02.29-31)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6877327&loc=d3e13212-122682

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 4
-Subparagraph (SAB TOPIC 4.C)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6959260&loc=d3e187143-122770

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 6
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6928386&loc=d3e21506-112644

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.3-04)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6959260&loc=d3e187085-122770

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 30
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6405834&loc=d3e23285-112656

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 3
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6928386&loc=d3e21475-112644

Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Glossary Preferred Stock
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6521494

Reference 12: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6928386&loc=d3e21463-112644

Reference 13: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 505
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 11
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6928386&loc=d3e21564-112644

Reference 14: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher AICPA
-Name Accounting Research Bulletin (ARB)
-Number 43
-Section B
-Paragraph 7, 11A
-Chapter 1
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 15: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher AICPA
-Name Accounting Principles Board Opinion (APB)
-Number 12
-Paragraph 10
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 16: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 5
-Paragraph 15
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 17: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 08
-Paragraph d
-Article 4

Reference 18: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 02
-Paragraph 29, 30, 31
-Article 5

Reference 19: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB)
-Number Topic 4
-Section E

Reference 20: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 08
-Article 4

Reference 21: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB)
-Number Topic 4
-Section C

Reference 22: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 129
-Paragraph 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

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-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 04
-Article 3

+ Details

Stock Compensation Plans

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Stock Compensation Plans [Abstract]

Stock Compensation Plans

14 - Stock Compensation Plans

Equity Incentive Plans

During 1996, we adopted an Equity Incentive Plan for Employees. During 2001, we adopted a nearly identical plan that made a total of 2,666,667 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance to employees of our subsidiaries and affiliates. During 2005, we amended the plan to make a total of 4,000,000 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance. During 2007, we adopted a nearly identical plan that made a total of 3,500,000 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance to employees of our subsidiaries and affiliates. During 2011, we adopted a nearly identical plan that made a total of 3,500,000 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance to employees of our subsidiaries and affiliates. Each plan provides for the granting of awards by our board of directors in the form of stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock or any combination of the above. The plans provide that stock options may become exercisable up to ten years from date of grant, with an option price not less than fair market value on date of grant. We have not granted any stock appreciation rights.

During 1996, we adopted an Equity Incentive Plan for Directors. During 2001, we adopted a nearly identical plan that made 355,556 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance to our directors and those of our subsidiaries and affiliates. During 2007, we adopted a nearly identical plan that made 400,000 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance to our directors and the directors of our subsidiaries and affiliates. During 2011, we adopted a nearly identical plan that made 400,000 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance to our directors and the directors of our subsidiaries and affiliates.We may make awards in the form of stock options. The plan also provides for the issuance of 400 shares of restricted stock on the first business day of January in each year to each of our directors and each director of Donegal Mutual who does not serve as one of our directors. We issued 6,800, 5,598 and 5,598 shares of restricted stock on January 2, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

We measure all share-based payments to employees, including grants of employee stock options, using a fair-value-based method and record such expense in our results of operations. In determining the expense we record for stock options granted to directors and employees of our subsidiaries and affiliates other than Donegal Mutual, we estimate the fair value of each option award on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The significant assumptions we utilize in applying the Black-Scholes option pricing model are the risk-free interest rate, expected term, dividend yield and expected volatility. The risk-free interest rate is the implied yield currently available on U.S. Treasury zero coupon issues with a remaining term equal to the expected term used as the assumption in the model. We base the expected term of an option award on our historical experience for similar awards. We determine the dividend yield by dividing the per share dividend by the grant date stock price. We base the expected volatility on the volatility of our stock price over a historical period comparable to the expected term.

The weighted-average grant date fair value of options granted during 2012 was $2.85. We calculated this fair value based upon a risk-free interest rate of .43%, expected life of five years, expected volatility of 33% and expected dividend yield of 3%.

The weighted-average grant date fair value of options granted during 2011 was $1.90. We calculated this fair value based upon a risk-free interest rate of .75%, expected life of five years, expected volatility of 31% and expected dividend yield of 4%.

The weighted-average grant date fair value of options granted during 2010 was $1.26. We calculated this fair value based upon a risk-free interest rate of 1.04%, expected life of three years, expected volatility of 29% and expected dividend yield of 4%.

We charged compensation expense for our stock compensation plans against income before income taxes of $420,735, $283,811 and $46,733 for the years ended December 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively, with a corresponding income tax benefit of $143,050, $96,496 and $15,889. At December 31, 2012 and 2011, our total unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested share-based compensation granted under our stock compensation plans was $1.2 million and $929,679, respectively. We expect to recognize this cost over a weighted average period of 8.9 years.

We account for share-based compensation to employees and directors of Donegal Mutual as share-based compensation to employees of a controlling entity. As such, we measure the fair value of an award at the grant date and recognize the fair value as a dividend to the controlling entity. These provisions apply to options granted to the employees and directors of Donegal Mutual, the employer of record for the employees that provide services to us. We recorded implied dividends of $2.5 million, $2.3 million and $1.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

During 2012, we received cash from option exercises under all stock compensation plans of $1.1 million. We realized actual tax benefits for the tax deductions from option exercises of share-based compensation of $52,422 for 2012. We did not receive any cash from option exercises in 2011 or 2010. No further shares are available for plans in effect prior to 2011.

Information regarding activity in our stock option plans follows:


	Number of Options			Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share
Outstanding at December 31, 2009		3,290,099		$	17.98
Granted - 2010		1,787,500			14.00
Forfeited - 2010		(15,500	)		15.69
Expired - 2010		(1,063,432	)		15.76

Outstanding at December 31, 2010		3,998,667			16.80
Granted - 2011		2,321,000			12.52
Forfeited - 2011		(52,000	)		15.63
Expired - 2011		(958,667	)		21.00

Outstanding at December 31, 2011		5,309,000			14.18
Granted - 2012		1,593,600			14.50
Exercised - 2012		(82,102	)		13.01
Forfeited - 2012		(109,673	)		13.84
Expired - 2012		(10,000	)		21.00

Outstanding at December 31, 2012		6,700,825		$	14.27

Exercisable at:
December 31, 2010		1,805,751		$	18.13

December 31, 2011		1,821,333		$	16.42

December 31, 2012		3,072,970		$	15.03

Shares available for future option grants at December 31, 2012 totaled 40,936 shares under all plans.

The following table summarizes information about fixed stock options at December 31, 2012:


Exercise Price	Number of Options Outstanding		Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	Number of Options Exercisable
$12.50		2,184,542	9.0 years		728,181
14.00		1,710,683	3.0 years		1,133,789
14.50		1,593,600	10.0 years		—
15.00		3,000	3.0 years		2,000
17.50		1,198,500	0.5 years		1,198,500
18.70		3,000	0.5 years		3,000
21.00		7,500	0.5 years		7,500

Total		6,700,825			3,072,970

Employee Stock Purchase Plans

During 1996, we adopted an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. During 2001, we adopted a nearly identical plan that made 533,333 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance. During 2011, we adopted another nearly identical plan that made 300,000 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance.

The 2011 plan extends over a 10-year period and provides for shares to be offered to all eligible employees at a purchase price equal to the lesser of 85% of the fair market value of our Class A common stock on the last day before the first day of each enrollment period (June 1 and December 1 of each year) under the plan or 85% of the fair market value of our common stock on the last day of each subscription period (June 30 and December 31 of each year).

A summary of plan activity follows:


	Shares Issued
	Price		Shares
January 1, 2010	$	12.85		11,717
July 1, 2010		10.45		12,403
January 1, 2011		11.02		13,243
July 1, 2011		10.88		11,371
January 1, 2012		11.91		10,523
July 1, 2012		11.29		19,031

On January 1, 2013, we issued an additional 16,485 shares at a price of $11.93 per share under this plan.

Agency Stock Purchase Plans

During 1996, we adopted an Agency Stock Purchase Plan. During 2001, we adopted a nearly identical plan that made 533,333 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance. During 2011, we adopted another nearly identical plan that made 300,000 shares of Class A common stock available for issuance. The plan provides for agents of our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual to invest up to $12,000 per subscription period (April 1 to September 30 and October 1 to March 31 of each year) under various methods. We issue stock at the end of each subscription period at a price equal to 90% of the average market price during the last ten trading days of each subscription period. During 2012, 2011 and 2010, we issued 70,366, 66,260 and 56,879 shares, respectively, under this plan. Expense recognized under the plan was not material.

Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions [Abstract]

Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions

15 - Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions

The following table presents selected information, as filed with insurance regulatory authorities, for our insurance subsidiaries as determined in accordance with accounting practices prescribed or permitted by such insurance regulatory authorities:


	2012			2011			2010
Atlantic States:
Statutory capital and surplus	$	180,465,658		$	173,505,872		$	191,775,057
Statutory unassigned surplus		124,924,794			113,497,280			131,817,978
Statutory net income (loss)		12,507,540			(7,729,040	)		11,002,447
Southern:
Statutory capital and surplus		58,841,059			60,876,093			63,609,630
Statutory unassigned surplus		7,843,473			9,364,037			12,612,044
Statutory net (loss) income		(1,539,943	)		1,795,195			(2,083,206	)
Le Mars:
Statutory capital and surplus		26,803,140			24,720,327			25,539,580
Statutory unassigned surplus		14,210,400			11,373,158			12,485,531
Statutory net income (loss)		2,423,225			(1,661,327	)		(3,166,242	)
Peninsula:
Statutory capital and surplus		42,471,092			40,744,215			41,932,367
Statutory unassigned surplus		24,671,678			22,601,043			23,580,784
Statutory net income		1,478,823			1,210,247			2,336,947
Sheboygan:
Statutory capital and surplus		10,944,235			10,800,499			11,671,405
Statutory unassigned (deficit) surplus		(1,087,936	)		(1,437,493	)		(479,140	)
Statutory net loss		(33,316	)		(1,237,478	)		(286,613	)
MICO:
Statutory capital and surplus		42,443,200			39,264,423			37,343,663
Statutory unassigned surplus		16,440,388			12,689,880			10,240,870
Statutory net income		2,698,257			2,889,619			3,026,178

Our principal source of cash for payment of dividends is dividends from our insurance subsidiaries. State insurance laws require our insurance subsidiaries to maintain certain minimum capital and surplus amounts on a statutory basis. Our insurance subsidiaries are subject to regulations that restrict the payment of dividends from statutory surplus and may require prior approval of their domiciliary insurance regulatory authorities. Our insurance subsidiaries are also subject to risk based capital (“RBC”) requirements that may further impact their ability to pay dividends. Our insurance subsidiaries’ statutory capital and surplus at December 31, 2012 exceeded the amount of statutory capital and surplus necessary to satisfy regulatory requirements, including the RBC requirements, by a significant margin. Amounts available for distribution to us as dividends from our insurance subsidiaries without prior approval of insurance regulatory authorities in 2013 are $18.0 million from Atlantic States, $0 from Southern, $2.7 million from Le Mars, $4.3 million from Peninsula, $0 from Sheboygan and $4.2 million from MICO, or a total of approximately $29.2 million.

Reconciliation of Statutory Filings to Amounts Reported Herein

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Reconciliation of Statutory Filings to Amounts Reported Herein [Abstract]

Reconciliation of Statutory Filings to Amounts Reported Herein

16 - Reconciliation of Statutory Filings to Amounts Reported Herein

Our insurance subsidiaries must file financial statements with state insurance regulatory authorities using accounting principles and practices prescribed or permitted by those authorities. We refer to these accounting principles and practices as statutory accounting principles (“SAP”). Accounting principles used to prepare these SAP financial statements differ from those used to prepare financial statements on the basis of generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”).

Reconciliations of statutory net income and capital and surplus, as determined using SAP, to the amounts included in the accompanying GAAP financial statements are as follows:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2012			2011			2010
Statutory net income (loss) of insurance subsidiaries	$	17,534,586		$	(4,732,784	)	$	9,163,680
Increases (decreases):
Deferred policy acquisition costs		3,696,742			1,979,376			1,601,400
Deferred federal income taxes		(1,151,250	)		5,922,490			2,380,430
Salvage and subrogation recoverable		772,600			1,273,000			748,000
Amortization of MICO fair value adjustments		(5,416	)		(3,275,777	)		(597,643	)
Consolidating eliminations and adjustments		(5,421,779	)		(15,080,164	)		(12,178,977	)
Parent-only net income		7,667,137			14,366,812			10,350,289

Net income as reported herein	$	23,092,620		$	452,953		$	11,467,179


	Year Ended December 31,
	2012			2011			2010
Statutory capital and surplus of insurance subsidiaries	$	361,968,384		$	349,911,429		$	371,871,702
Increases (decreases):
Deferred policy acquisition costs		40,121,697			36,424,955			34,445,579
Deferred federal income taxes		(25,682,004	)		(21,007,223	)		(14,834,855	)
Salvage and subrogation recoverable		12,000,600			11,228,000			9,955,000
Non-admitted assets and other adjustments, net		2,005,603			1,478,988			4,889,231
Fixed maturities		39,607,340			33,165,065			4,430,879
Parent-only equity and other adjustments		(29,987,526	)		(27,749,622	)		(30,654,726	)

Stockholders’ equity as reported herein	$	400,034,094		$	383,451,592		$	380,102,810

Supplementary Cash Flow Information

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Supplementary Cash Flow Information [Abstract]

Supplementary Cash Flow Information

17 - Supplementary Cash Flow Information

The following table reflects net income taxes and interest paid during 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Income taxes	$	1,626,965	$	324,291	$	1,100,000
Interest		2,128,693		1,793,366		705,210

Earnings Per Share

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Earnings Per Share [Abstract]

Earnings Per Share

18 - Earnings Per Share

We have two classes of common stock, which we refer to as Class A common stock and Class B common stock. Our Class A common stock is entitled to be paid cash dividends that are at least 10% higher than the cash we pay on our Class B common stock. Accordingly, we use the two-class method for the computation of earnings per common share. The two-class method is an earnings allocation formula that determines earnings per share separately for each class of common stock based on dividends declared and an allocation of remaining undistributed earnings using a participation percentage reflecting the dividend rights of each class.

We present below a reconciliation of the numerators and denominators we used in the basic and diluted per share computations for our Class A common stock:


	Year Ended December 31,
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)	2012		2011		2010
Basic earnings per share:
Numerator:
Allocation of net income	$	18,455	$	390	$	9,183

Denominator:
Weighted-average shares outstanding		20,031,455		19,997,146		19,961,274

Basic earnings per share	$	0.92	$	0.02	$	0.46

Diluted earnings per share:
Numerator:
Allocation of net income	$	18,455	$	390	$	9,183

Denominator:
Number of shares used in basic computation		20,031,455		19,997,146		19,961,274
Weighted-average effect of dilutive securities
Add: Director and employee stock options		274,103		36,499		17,794

Number of shares used in per share computations		20,305,558		20,033,645		19,979,068

Diluted earnings per share	$	0.91	$	0.02	$	0.46

We used the following information in the basic and diluted per share computations for our Class B common stock:


	Year Ended December 31,
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)	2012		2011		2010
Basic and diluted earnings per share:
Numerator:
Allocation of net income	$	4,638	$	63	$	2,284

Denominator:
Weighted-average shares outstanding		5,576,775		5,576,775		5,576,775

Basic and diluted earnings per share	$	0.83	$	0.01	$	0.41

During 2012, 2011 and 2010, we did not include certain options to purchase shares of our Class A common stock in the computation of diluted earnings per share because the exercise price of the options was greater than the average market price of our Class A common stock. The following table reflects such options that remained outstanding at December 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010:


	2012		2011		2010
Options excluded from diluted earnings per share		1,209,000		1,238,000		2,219,167

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company [Abstract]

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company

19 - Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company

Condensed Balance Sheets

(in thousands)


December 31,	2012		2011
*Assets*
Investment in subsidiaries/affiliates (equity method)	$	470,565	$	445,795
Short-term investments		326		9,258
Cash		805		684
Property and equipment		883		1,224
Other		304		381

Total assets	$	472,883	$	457,342

*Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity*
Liabilities
Cash dividends declared to stockholders	$	3,067	$	2,996
Borrowings under line of credit		52,000		54,500
Subordinated debentures		15,465		15,465
Other		2,316		930

Total liabilities		72,848		73,891

Stockholders’ equity		400,035		383,451

Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	472,883	$	457,342

Condensed Statements of Income and Comprehensive Income

(in thousands)


Year Ended December 31,	2012		2011			2010
*Statements of Income*
Revenues
Dividends from subsidiaries	$	7,000	$	16,000		$	12,000
Other		5,487		2,995			701

Total revenues		12,487		18,995			12,701

Expenses
Operating expenses		2,323		2,392			2,060
Interest		2,118		1,864			778

Total expenses		4,441		4,256			2,838

Income before income tax expense (benefit) and equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries		8,046		14,739			9,863
Income tax expense (benefit)		378		372			(487	)

Income before equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries		7,668		14,367			10,350
Equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries		15,425		(13,914	)		1,117

Net income	$	23,093	$	453		$	11,467

*Statements of Comprehensive Income*
Net income	$	23,093	$	453		$	11,467

Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax
Unrealized gain (loss) - subsidiaries		4,644		14,972			(6,446	)

Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax		4,644		14,972			(6,446	)

Comprehensive income	$	27,737	$	15,425		$	5,021

Condensed Statements of Cash Flows

(in thousands)


Year Ended December 31,	2012			2011			2010
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income	$	23,093		$	453		$	11,467

Adjustments:
Equity in undistributed net (income) loss of subsidiaries		(15,425	)		13,914			(1,117	)
Other		(2,624	)		(396	)		547

Net adjustments		(18,049	)		13,518			(570	)

Net cash provided		5,044			13,971			10,897

Cash flows from investing activities:
Net sale (purchase) of short-term investments		8,932			6,437			(249	)
Net purchase of property and equipment		(147	)		(380	)		(492	)
Investment in subsidiaries		(100	)		(27,777	)		(35,088	)
Other		44			43			20

Net cash used		8,729			(21,677	)		(35,809	)

Cash flows from financing activities:
Cash dividends paid		(12,208	)		(11,874	)		(11,405	)
Issuance of common stock		2,983			1,461			1,199
Payments on line of credit		(6,000	)		(3,000	)		—
Borrowings under line of credit		3,500			22,500			35,000
Repurchase of treasury stock		(1,927	)		(1,538	)		(146	)

Net cash provided (used)		(13,652	)		7,549			24,648

Net change in cash		121			(157	)		(264	)
Cash at beginning of year		684			841			1,105

Cash at end of year	$	805		$	684		$	841

- Definition

The entire disclosure for condensed financial information, including the financial position, cash flows, and the results of operations of the registrant (parent company) as of the same dates or for the same periods for which audited consolidated financial statements are being presented. Alternatively, the details of this disclosure can be reported by the specific parent company taxonomy elements, indicating the appropriate date and period contexts in an instance document.

+ References + Details

Segment Information

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Segment Information [Abstract]

Segment Information

20 - Segment Information

We have four reportable segments, which consist of our investment function, our personal lines of insurance, our commercial lines of insurance and our investment in DFSC. Using independent agents, our insurance subsidiaries market personal lines of insurance to individuals and commercial lines of insurance to small and medium-sized businesses.

We evaluate the performance of the personal lines and commercial lines primarily based upon our insurance subsidiaries’ underwriting results as determined under SAP for our total business.

We do not allocate assets to the personal and commercial lines and review the two segments in total for purposes of decision-making. We operate only in the United States and no single customer or agent provides 10 percent or more of our revenues.

Financial data by segment is as follows:


	2012			2011			2010
	(in thousands)
Revenues:
Premiums earned:
Commercial lines	$	174,735		$	152,247		$	117,755
Personal lines		300,272			282,498			260,900

SAP premiums earned		475,007			434,745			378,655
GAAP adjustments		(5	)		(3,275	)		(625	)

GAAP premiums earned		475,002			431,470			378,030
Net investment income		20,169			20,858			19,950
Realized investment gains		6,859			12,281			4,396
Equity in earnings (loss) of DFSC		4,533			2,023			(269	)
Other		8,420			8,386			6,442

Total revenues	$	514,983		$	475,018		$	408,549


	2012			2011			2010
	(in thousands)
Income before income taxes:
Underwriting income (loss):
Commercial lines	$	5,251		$	(6,560	)	$	2,252
Personal lines		(18,236	)		(40,739	)		(22,526	)

SAP underwriting loss		(12,985	)		(47,299	)		(20,274	)
GAAP adjustments		5,545			1,532			2,458

GAAP underwriting loss		(7,440	)		(45,767	)		(17,816	)
Net investment income		20,169			20,858			19,950
Realized investment gains		6,859			12,281			4,396
Equity in earnings (loss) of DFSC		4,533			2,023			(269	)
Other		3,737			3,866			3,583

Income (loss) before income taxes	$	27,858		$	(6,739	)	$	9,844

- Definition

The entire disclosure for reporting segments including data and tables. Reportable segments include those that meet any of the following quantitative thresholds a) it's reported revenue, including sales to external customers and intersegment sales or transfers is 10 percent or more of the combined revenue, internal and external, of all operating segments b) the absolute amount of its reported profit or loss is 10 percent or more of the greater, in absolute amount of 1) the combined reported profit of all operating segments that did not report a loss or 2) the combined reported loss of all operating segments that did report a loss c) its assets are 10 percent or more of the combined assets of all operating segments.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 34
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8981-108599

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 41
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e9038-108599

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 33
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8971-108599

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 12
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8595-108599

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8380-108599

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8933-108599

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 26
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8844-108599

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 35
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8984-108599

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 40
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e9031-108599

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 42
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e9054-108599

Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 10
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8538-108599

Reference 12: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 29
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8864-108599

Reference 13: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 31
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8924-108599

Reference 14: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 30
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6534315&loc=d3e8906-108599

Reference 15: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 131
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

+ Details

Guaranty Fund and Other Insurance-Related Assessments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Guaranty Fund and Other Insurance-Related Assessments [Abstract]

Guaranty Fund and Other Insurance-Related Assessments

21 - Guaranty Fund and Other Insurance-Related Assessments

Our insurance subsidiaries’ liabilities for guaranty fund and other insurance-related assessments were $1,403,829 and $1,812,078 at December 31, 2012 and 2011, respectively. These liabilities included $433,994 and $548,644 related to surcharges collected by our insurance subsidiaries on behalf of regulatory authorities for 2012 and 2011, respectively.

Interim Financial Data (Unaudited)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Interim Financial Data [Abstract]

Interim Financial Data (unaudited)

22 - Interim Financial Data (unaudited)


	2012
	First Quarter		Second Quarter		Third Quarter		Fourth Quarter
Net premiums earned	$	114,691,791	$	117,569,122	$	120,916,960	$	121,824,349
Total revenues		125,348,162		127,299,190		130,431,531		131,903,702
Net losses and loss expenses		76,609,219		86,385,353		82,105,094		87,771,918
Net income		8,010,147		2,023,067		6,839,384		6,220,022
Net earnings per common share:
Class A common stock - basic		0.32		0.08		0.27		0.25
Class A common stock - diluted		0.31		0.08		0.27		0.25
Class B common stock - basic and diluted		0.29		0.07		0.25		0.22


	2011
	First Quarter		Second Quarter			Third Quarter		Fourth Quarter
Net premiums earned	$	103,795,279	$	104,991,401		$	108,506,809	$	114,176,695
Total revenues		111,583,442		117,054,498			119,164,471		127,215,208
Net losses and loss expenses		73,079,565		84,195,796			89,411,543		93,815,873
Net income (loss)		2,205,936		(1,693,989	)		819,926		(878,920	)
Net earnings (loss) per common share:
Class A common stock - basic and diluted		0.09		(0.07	)		0.03		(0.03	)
Class B common stock - basic and diluted		0.08		(0.06	)		0.03		(0.03	)

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the quarterly financial data in the annual financial statements. The disclosure may include a tabular presentation of financial information for each fiscal quarter for the current and previous year, including revenues, gross profit, income or loss before extraordinary items and earnings per share data. It also includes an indication if the information in the note is unaudited, comments on the aggregate effect of year-end adjustments, and an explanation of matters or transactions that affect comparability or are pertinent to an understanding of the information furnished.

+ References + Details

Supplementary Insurance Information

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Supplementary Insurance Information [Abstract]

SUPPLEMENTARY INSURANCE INFORMATION

SCHEDULE III — SUPPLEMENTARY INSURANCE INFORMATION

Years Ended December 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010

($ in thousands)


Segment	Net Earned Premiums		Net Investment Income		Net Losses And Loss Expenses		Amortization of Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs		Other Underwriting Expenses		Net Premiums Written
Year Ended December 31, 2012
Personal lines	$	300,269	$	—	$	218,502	$	46,977	$	46,725	$	308,571
Commercial lines		174,733		—		114,370		27,337		27,190		187,876
Investments		—		20,169		—		—		—		—

	$	475,002	$	20,169	$	332,872	$	74,314	$	73,915	$	496,447

Year Ended December 31, 2011
Personal lines	$	280,370	$	—	$	232,141	$	44,558	$	43,487	$	291,065
Commercial lines		151,100		—		108,362		24,013		23,437		162,986
Investments		—		20,858		—		—		—		—

	$	431,470	$	20,858	$	340,503	$	68,571	$	66,924	$	454,051

Year Ended December 31, 2010
Personal lines	$	260,469	$	—	$	196,008	$	45,719	$	37,596	$	268,047
Commercial lines		117,561		—		78,301		20,635		16,969		123,475
Investments		—		19,950		—		—		—		—

	$	378,030	$	19,950	$	274,309	$	66,354	$	54,565	$	391,522


	At December 31,
Segment	Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs		Liability For Losses And Loss Expenses		Unearned Premiums		Other Policy Claims and Benefits Payable
2012
Personal lines	$	24,956	$	201,884	$	225,841	$	—
Commercial lines		15,166		256,943		137,247		—
Investments		—		—		—		—

	$	40,122	$	458,827	$	363,088	$	—

2011
Personal lines	$	23,385	$	207,047	$	216,314	$	—
Commercial lines		13,040		235,361		120,623		—
Investments		—		—		—		—

	$	36,425	$	442,408	$	336,937	$	—

See accompanying Report and Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm.

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	12 Months Ended
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	Dec. 31, 2012
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Organization and Business	Organization and Business Donegal Mutual Insurance Company (“Donegal Mutual”) organized us as an insurance holding company on August 26, 1986. Our insurance subsidiaries, Atlantic States Insurance Company (“Atlantic States”), Southern Insurance Company of Virginia (“Southern”), Le Mars Insurance Company (“Le Mars”), the Peninsula Insurance Group (“Peninsula”), which consists of Peninsula Indemnity Company and The Peninsula Insurance Company, Sheboygan Falls Insurance Company (“Sheboygan”) and Michigan Insurance Company (“MICO”), write personal and commercial lines of property and casualty coverages exclusively through a network of independent insurance agents in certain Mid-Atlantic, Midwestern, New England and Southern states. We acquired MICO on December 1, 2010, and we have included MICO’s results of operations in our consolidated results of operations since that date. We also own 48.2% of the outstanding stock of Donegal Financial Services Corporation (“DFSC”), a grandfathered unitary savings and loan holding company that owns Union Community Bank FSB (“UCB”), a federal savings bank. UCB has 13 banking offices, all of which are located in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Donegal Mutual owns the remaining 51.8% of the outstanding stock of DFSC. We have four segments: our investment function, our personal lines of insurance, our commercial lines of insurance and our investment in DFSC. The personal lines products of our insurance subsidiaries consist primarily of homeowners and private passenger automobile policies. The commercial lines products of our insurance subsidiaries consist primarily of commercial automobile, commercial multi-peril and workers’ compensation policies. At December 31, 2012, Donegal Mutual held approximately 39% of our outstanding Class A common stock and approximately 76% of our outstanding Class B common stock. This ownership provides Donegal Mutual with approximately 66% of the total voting power of our common stock. Our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual have interrelated operations due to a pooling agreement and other intercompany agreements and transactions. While each company maintains its separate corporate existence, our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual conduct business together as the Donegal Insurance Group. As such, Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries share the same business philosophy, the same management, the same employees and the same facilities and offer the same types of insurance products. Atlantic States, our largest subsidiary, participates in a pooling agreement with Donegal Mutual. Under the pooling agreement, the two companies pool their insurance business and each company receives an allocated percentage of the pooled business. Atlantic States has an 80% share of the results of the pooled business, and Donegal Mutual has a 20% share of the results of the pooled business. The same executive management and underwriting personnel administer products, classes of business underwritten, pricing practices and underwriting standards of Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries. In addition, as the Donegal Insurance Group, Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries share a combined business plan to achieve market penetration and underwriting profitability objectives. The products our insurance subsidiaries and Donegal Mutual market are generally complementary, thereby allowing the Donegal Insurance Group to offer a broader range of products to a given market and to expand the Donegal Insurance Group’s ability to service an entire personal lines or commercial lines account. Distinctions within the products of Donegal Mutual and our insurance subsidiaries generally relate to specific risk profiles targeted within similar classes of business, such as preferred tier versus standard tier products, but we do not allocate all of the standard risk gradients to one company. Therefore, the underwriting profitability of the business the individual companies write directly will vary. However, as the risk characteristics of all business Donegal Mutual and Atlantic States write directly are homogenized within the underwriting pool, Donegal Mutual and Atlantic States share the underwriting results in proportion to their respective participation in the pool. Pooled business represents the predominant percentage of the net underwriting activity of both Donegal Mutual and Atlantic States. We refer to Note 3 - Transactions with Affiliates for more information regarding the pooling agreement. In December 2010, we acquired MICO, which had been a majority owned subsidiary of West Bend Mutual Insurance Company (“West Bend”), for $42.3 million in cash. Effective on December 1, 2010, MICO entered into a 50% quota-share agreement with third-party reinsurers and a 25% quota-share reinsurance agreement with Donegal Mutual to replace the 75% quota-share reinsurance agreement MICO maintained with West Bend through November 30, 2010. In May 2011, DFSC and Union National Financial Corporation (“UNNF”) merged, with DFSC as the surviving company in the merger. Under the merger agreement, Province Bank FSB, which DFSC owned, and Union National Community Bank, which UNNF owned, also merged and began doing business as UCB. Donegal Mutual contributed $22.1 million and we contributed $20.6 million to DFSC as additional capital to facilitate the mergers. We use the equity method of accounting for our investment in DFSC. Under the equity method, we record our investment at cost, with adjustments for our share of DFSC’s earnings and losses as well as changes in DFSC’s equity due to unrealized gains and losses.
Basis of Consolidation	Basis of Consolidation Our consolidated financial statements, which we have prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, include our accounts and those of our wholly owned subsidiaries. We have eliminated all significant inter-company accounts and transactions in consolidation. The terms “we,” “us,” “our” or the “Company” as used herein refer to the consolidated entity.
Use of Estimates	Use of Estimates In preparing our consolidated financial statements, our management makes estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the balance sheet and revenues and expenses for the period. Actual results could differ significantly from those estimates. We make estimates and assumptions that can have a significant effect on amounts and disclosures we report in our consolidated financial statements. The most significant estimates relate to our insurance subsidiaries’ reserves for property and casualty insurance unpaid losses and loss expenses, valuation of investments and determination of other-than-temporary impairment and our insurance subsidiaries’ policy acquisition costs. While we believe our estimates and the estimates of our insurance subsidiaries are appropriate, the ultimate amounts may differ from the estimates provided. We regularly review our methods for making these estimates as well as the continuing appropriateness of the estimated amounts, and we reflect any adjustment we consider necessary in our current results of operations.
Reclassification	Reclassification During 2012, we recorded an entry that reduced Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income and increased Retained Earnings by $1.8 million to correct an immaterial error related to prior years.
Investments	Investments We classify our debt and equity securities into the following categories: Held to Maturity - Debt securities that we have the positive intent and ability to hold to maturity; reported at amortized cost. Available for Sale - Debt and equity securities not classified as held to maturity; reported at fair value, with unrealized gains and losses excluded from income and reported as a separate component of stockholders’ equity (net of tax effects). Short-term investments carried at amortized cost, which approximates fair value. We make estimates concerning the valuation of our investments and the recognition of other-than-temporary declines in the value of our investments. For equity securities, we write down the investment to its fair value and we reflect the amount of the write-down as a realized loss in our results of operations when we consider the decline in value of an individual investment to be other than temporary. We individually monitor all of our investments for other-than-temporary declines in value. Generally, we assume there has been an other-than-temporary decline in value if an individual equity security has depreciated in value by more than 20% of original cost and has been in such an unrealized loss position for more than six months. With respect to a debt security that is in an unrealized loss position, we first assess if we intend to sell the debt security. If we determine we intend to sell the debt security, we recognize the impairment loss in our results of operations. If we do not intend to sell the debt security, we determine whether it is more likely than not that we will be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery. If we determine it is more likely than not that we will be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery, we recognize an impairment loss in our results of operations. If we determine it is more likely than not that we will not be required to sell the debt security prior to recovery, we then evaluate whether a credit loss has occurred. We determine whether a credit loss has occurred by comparing the amortized cost of the debt security to the present value of the cash flows we expect to collect. If we expect a cash flow shortfall, we consider that a credit loss has occurred. If we determine that a credit loss has occurred, we consider the impairment to be other than temporary. We then recognize the amount of the impairment loss related to the credit loss in our results of operations, and we recognize the remaining portion of the impairment loss in our other comprehensive income, net of applicable taxes. In addition, we may write down securities in an unrealized loss position based on a number of other factors, including when the fair value of an investment is significantly below its cost, when the financial condition of the issuer of a security has deteriorated, the occurrence of industry, company or geographic events that have negatively impacted the value of a security and rating agency downgrades. We amortize premiums and discounts on debt securities over the life of the security as an adjustment to yield using the effective interest method. We compute realized investment gains and losses using the specific identification method. We amortize premiums and discounts for mortgage-backed debt securities using anticipated prepayments. We account for investments in affiliates using the equity method of accounting. Under the equity method, we record our investment at cost, with adjustments for our share of the affiliate’s earnings and losses as well as changes in the affiliate’s equity due to unrealized gains and losses.
Fair Values of Financial Instruments	Fair Values of Financial Instruments We use the following methods and assumptions in estimating our fair value disclosures: Investments - We present our investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities at estimated fair value. The estimated fair value of a security may differ from the amount that could be realized if we sold the security in a forced transaction. In addition, the valuation of fixed maturity investments is more subjective when markets are less liquid, increasing the potential that the estimated fair value does not reflect the price at which an actual transaction would occur. We utilize nationally recognized independent pricing services to estimate fair values for our fixed maturity and equity investments. We generally obtain one price per security. The pricing services utilize market quotations for fixed maturity and equity securities that have quoted prices in active markets. For fixed maturity securities that generally do not trade on a daily basis, the pricing services prepare estimates of fair value measurements based predominantly on observable market inputs. The pricing services do not use broker quotes in determining the fair values of our investments. Our investment personnel review the estimates of fair value the pricing services provide to determine if the estimates obtained are representative of fair values based upon their general knowledge of the market, their research findings related to unusual fluctuations in value and their comparison of such values to execution prices for similar securities. Our investment personnel monitor the market and are familiar with current trading ranges for similar securities and pricing of specific investments. Our investment personnel review all pricing estimates that we receive from the pricing services against their expectations with respect to pricing based on fair market curves, security ratings, coupon rates, security type and recent trading activity. Our investment personnel review documentation with respect to the pricing services’ pricing methodology that they obtain periodically to determine if the primary pricing sources, market inputs and pricing frequency for various security types are reasonable. We refer to Note 6 - Fair Value Measurements for more information regarding our methods and assumptions in estimating fair values. Cash and Short-Term Investments - The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheet for these instruments approximate their fair values. Premiums and Reinsurance Receivables and Payables - The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheet for these instruments related to premiums and paid losses and loss expenses approximate their fair values. Subordinated Debentures - The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheet for these instruments approximate their fair values.
Revenue Recognition	Revenue Recognition Our insurance subsidiaries recognize insurance premiums as income over the terms of the policies they issue. Our insurance subsidiaries calculate unearned premiums on a daily pro-rata basis. We recorded an unearned premium liability for the fair value of the net unexpired portion of the insurance policies we acquired in connection with our acquisition of MICO. We recognized this unearned premium liability as income over the terms of MICO’s policies.
Policy Acquisition Costs	Policy Acquisition Costs We defer our insurance subsidiaries’ policy acquisition costs, consisting primarily of commissions, premium taxes and certain other underwriting costs, reduced by ceding commissions, that vary with and relate directly to the production of business. We amortize these deferred policy acquisition costs over the period in which our insurance subsidiaries earn the premiums. The method we follow in computing deferred policy acquisition costs limits the amount of such deferred costs to their estimated realizable value, which gives effect to the premium to be earned, related investment income, losses and loss expenses and certain other costs we expect to incur as our insurance subsidiaries earn the premium. Estimates in the calculation of policy acquisition costs have not shown material variability because of uncertainties in applying accounting principles or as a result of sensitivities to changes in key assumptions.
Property and Equipment	Property and Equipment We report property and equipment at depreciated cost that we compute using the straight-line method based upon estimated useful lives of the assets.
Losses and Loss Expenses	Losses and Loss Expenses Liabilities for losses and loss expenses are estimates at a given point in time of the amounts an insurer expects to pay with respect to policyholder claims based on facts and circumstances then known. At the time of establishing its estimates, an insurer recognizes that its ultimate liability for losses and loss expenses will exceed or be less than such estimates. Our insurance subsidiaries base their estimates of liabilities for losses and loss expenses on assumptions as to future loss trends and expected claims severity, judicial theories of liability and other factors. However, during the loss adjustment period, our insurance subsidiaries may learn additional facts regarding certain claims, and consequently, it often becomes necessary for our insurance subsidiaries to refine and adjust their estimates of liability. We reflect any adjustments to our insurance subsidiaries’ liabilities for losses and loss expenses in our operating results in the period in which our insurance subsidiaries record the changes in estimates. Our insurance subsidiaries maintain liabilities for the payment of losses and loss expenses with respect to both reported and unreported claims. Our insurance subsidiaries establish these liabilities for the purpose of covering the ultimate costs of settling all losses, including investigation and litigation costs. Our insurance subsidiaries base the amount of their liability for reported losses primarily upon a case-by-case evaluation of the type of risk involved, knowledge of the circumstances surrounding each claim and the insurance policy provisions relating to the type of loss their policyholder incurred. Our insurance subsidiaries determine the amount of their liability for unreported claims and loss expenses on the basis of historical information by line of insurance. Our insurance subsidiaries account for inflation in the reserving function through analysis of costs and trends and reviews of historical reserving results. Our insurance subsidiaries closely monitor their liabilities and recompute them periodically using new information on reported claims and a variety of statistical techniques. Our insurance subsidiaries do not discount their liabilities for losses. We recorded a liability for the fair value of the net loss and loss expense reserves we assumed in connection with our acquisition of MICO. We incorporated various factors in determining the fair value of those reserve estimates, including the guarantee against any deficiency in excess of $1.0 million we discuss in Note 4-Business Combinations. Reserve estimates can change over time because of unexpected changes in assumptions related to our insurance subsidiaries’ external environment and, to a lesser extent, assumptions as to our insurance subsidiaries’ internal operations. For example, our insurance subsidiaries have experienced a decrease in claims frequency on workers’ compensation claims during the past several years while claims severity has gradually increased. These trend changes give rise to greater uncertainty as to the pattern of future loss settlements on workers’ compensation claims. Related uncertainties regarding future trends include the cost of medical technologies and procedures and changes in the utilization of medical procedures. Assumptions related to our insurance subsidiaries’ external environment include the absence of significant changes in tort law and the legal environment that increase liability exposure, consistency in judicial interpretations of insurance coverage and policy provisions and the rate of loss cost inflation. Internal assumptions include consistency in the recording of premium and loss statistics, consistency in the recording of claims, payment and case reserving methodology, accurate measurement of the impact of rate changes and changes in policy provisions, consistency in the quality and characteristics of business written within a given line of business and consistency in reinsurance coverage and collectibility of reinsured losses, among other items. To the extent our insurance subsidiaries determine that underlying factors impacting their assumptions have changed, our insurance subsidiaries attempt to make appropriate adjustments for such changes in their reserves. Accordingly, our insurance subsidiaries’ ultimate liability for unpaid losses and loss expenses will likely differ from the amount recorded. Our insurance subsidiaries seek to enhance their underwriting results by carefully selecting the product lines they underwrite. Our insurance subsidiaries’ personal lines products include standard and preferred risks in private passenger automobile and homeowners lines. Our insurance subsidiaries’ commercial lines products primarily include business offices, wholesalers, service providers, contractors, artisans and light manufacturing operations. Our insurance subsidiaries have limited exposure to asbestos and other environmental liabilities. Our insurance subsidiaries write no medical malpractice liability risks.
Income Taxes	Income Taxes We currently file a consolidated federal income tax return. We account for income taxes using the asset and liability method. The objective of the asset and liability method is to establish deferred tax assets and liabilities for the temporary differences between the financial reporting basis and the tax basis of our assets and liabilities at enacted tax rates expected to be in effect when we realize or settle such amounts.
Credit Risk	Credit Risk Our objective is to earn competitive returns by investing in a diversified portfolio of securities. Our portfolio of fixed maturity securities and, to a lesser extent, short-term investments is subject to credit risk. We define this risk as the potential loss in fair value resulting from adverse changes in the borrower’s ability to repay the debt. We manage this risk by performing an analysis of prospective investments and through regular reviews of our portfolio by our investment staff. We also limit the amount of our total investment portfolio that we invest in any one security. Our insurance subsidiaries provide property and liability insurance coverages through independent insurance agencies located throughout their operating areas. Our insurance subsidiaries bill the majority of this business directly to their policyholders, although our insurance subsidiaries bill a portion of their commercial business through their agents, to whom they extend credit in the normal course of business. Our insurance subsidiaries have reinsurance agreements with Donegal Mutual and with a number of major unaffiliated reinsurers.
Reinsurance Accounting and Reporting	Reinsurance Accounting and Reporting Our insurance subsidiaries rely upon reinsurance agreements to limit their maximum net loss from large single risks or risks in concentrated areas and to increase their capacity to write insurance. Reinsurance does not relieve our insurance subsidiaries from liability to their respective policyholders. To the extent that a reinsurer cannot pay losses for which it is liable under the terms of a reinsurance agreement with one of our insurance subsidiaries, our insurance subsidiaries retain continued liability for such losses. However, in an effort to reduce the risk of non-payment, our insurance subsidiaries require all of their reinsurers to have an A.M. Best rating of A- or better or, with respect to foreign reinsurers, to have a financial condition that, in the opinion of management, is equivalent to a company with an A.M. Best rating of A- or better. We refer to Note 11 - Reinsurance for more information regarding our reinsurance agreements.
Stock-Based Compensation	Stock-Based Compensation We measure all share-based payments to employees, including grants of stock options, using a fair-value-based method and record such expense in our results of operations. In determining the expense we record for stock options granted to directors and employees of our subsidiaries and affiliates other than Donegal Mutual, we estimate the fair value of each option award on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The significant assumptions we utilize in applying the Black-Scholes option pricing model are the risk-free interest rate, expected term, dividend yield and expected volatility. In 2012, we realized $52,422 in tax benefits upon the exercise of stock options. We did not realize any tax benefits upon the exercise of stock options in 2011 or 2010.
Earnings per Share	Earnings per Share We calculate basic earnings per share by dividing net income by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding for the period. Diluted earnings per share reflects the dilution that could occur if securities or other contracts to issue common stock were exercised or converted into common stock. We have two classes of common stock, which we refer to as Class A common stock and Class B common stock. Our Class A common stock is entitled to cash dividends that are at least 10% higher than those declared and paid on our Class B common stock. Accordingly, we use the two-class method for the computation of earnings per common share. The two-class method is an earnings allocation formula that determines earnings per share separately for each class of common stock based on dividends declared and an allocation of remaining undistributed earnings using a participation percentage that reflects the dividend rights of each class.
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets	Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price over the underlying fair value of acquired entities. When completing acquisitions, we seek also to identify separately identifiable intangible assets that we have acquired. We assess goodwill and intangible assets with an indefinite useful life for impairment annually. We also assess goodwill and other intangible assets for impairment upon the occurrence of certain events. In making our assessment, we consider a number of factors including operating results, business plans, economic projections, anticipated future cash flows and current market data. Inherent uncertainties exist with respect to these factors and to our judgment in applying them when we make our assessment. Impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets could result from changes in economic and operating conditions in future periods.

Transactions with Affiliates (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Transactions with Affiliates [Abstract]

Schedule of reinsurance Atlantic States ceded to the pool


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	132,876,094	$	118,812,725	$	105,376,068
Losses and loss expenses		92,459,147		97,130,846		81,203,625
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		70,572,281		64,214,378		57,783,435
Liability for losses and loss expenses		83,623,652		77,312,645		65,028,781

Schedule of reinsurance Atlantic States assumed from the pool


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	298,803,060	$	266,687,610	$	238,308,846
Losses and loss expenses		187,415,893		206,907,170		160,256,348
Unearned premiums		157,140,642		141,880,039		125,322,884
Liability for losses and loss expenses		162,863,045		156,941,512		134,580,026

Schedule of Southern and Le Mars assumed from Donegal Mutual pursuant to the quota-share reinsurance agreements


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	22,189,399	$	17,757,409	$	14,516,901
Losses and loss expenses		19,620,587		14,983,405		12,600,094
Unearned premiums		9,926,381		10,225,922		8,124,069
Liability for losses and loss expenses		8,873,592		7,770,053		7,316,879

Schedule of reinsurance ceded to Donegal Mutual pursuant to these quota-share reinsurance agreements


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	33,046,914	$	22,123,229	$	4,516,313
Losses and loss expenses		22,569,557		16,038,590		3,463,112
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		15,457,605		14,181,338		4,590,424
Liability for losses and loss expenses		18,285,182		11,868,641		4,006,231

Schedule of insurance subsidiaries ceded to Donegal Mutual pursuant to these reinsurance agreements


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	12,460,511	$	12,953,452	$	8,110,268
Losses and loss expenses		10,787,850		20,770,637		6,649,775
Liability for losses and loss expenses		2,206,786		3,980,024		3,441,447

Schedule of affiliated reinsurance transactions on net premiums our insurance subsidiaries earned


	2012			2011			2010
Assumed	$	320,992,459		$	284,445,019		$	252,825,747
Ceded		(178,383,519	)		(153,889,406	)		(118,002,649	)

Net	$	142,608,940		$	130,555,613		$	134,823,098

Schedule of reinsurance transactions on net losses and loss expenses our insurance subsidiaries incurred


	2012			2011			2010
Assumed	$	207,036,480		$	221,890,575		$	172,856,442
Ceded		(125,816,554	)		(133,940,073	)		(91,316,512	)

Net	$	81,219,926		$	87,950,502		$	81,539,930

Business Combinations (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Business Combinations [Abstract]

Estimated fair value of net assets


(in thousands)
Assets acquired:
Investments	$	68,693
Premiums receivable		27,803
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		25,054
Reinsurance receivable		83,818
Goodwill		4,703
Other intangible assets		958
Other		2,801

Total assets acquired		213,830

Liabilities assumed:
Losses and loss expenses		104,815
Unearned premiums		33,688
Reinsurance balances payable		16,899
Accrued expenses		9,990
Other		6,142

Total liabilities assumed		171,534

Net assets acquired	$	42,296

Unaudited pro forma historical results


	Year Ended December 31,
	2010			2009
	(in thousands, except per share data)
Total revenues	$	458,231		$	423,184
Income before income tax benefit		13,619			15,232
Income tax benefit		(741	)		(146	)
Net income		14,360			15,378
Class A earnings per share - basic and diluted		0.58			0.62
Class B earnings per share - basic and diluted		0.52			0.55

- Definition

Tabular disclosure of pro forma results of operations for a material business acquisition or series of individually immaterial business acquisitions that are material in the aggregate.

+ References + Details

Investments (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Investments [Abstract]

Summary of amortized cost and estimated fair value of fixed maturities


	2012
	Amortized Cost		Gross Unrealized Gains		Gross Unrealized Losses		Estimated Fair Value
Held to Maturity
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	1,000,000	$	11,510	$	—	$	1,011,510
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		40,909,132		1,609,211		—		42,518,343
Residential mortgage-backed securities		191,064		14,822		—		205,886

Totals	$	42,100,196	$	1,635,543	$	—	$	43,735,739


	2012
	Amortized Cost		Gross Unrealized Gains		Gross Unrealized Losses		Estimated Fair Value
Available for Sale
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	70,253,846	$	1,101,208	$	43,951	$	71,311,103
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		385,371,983		32,221,045		606,065		416,986,963
Corporate securities		73,941,532		3,522,954		108,709		77,355,777
Residential mortgage-backed securities		125,606,445		3,315,976		66,443		128,855,978

Fixed maturities		655,173,806		40,161,183		825,168		694,509,821
Equity securities		8,663,183		200,823		106,748		8,757,258

Totals	$	663,836,989	$	40,362,006	$	931,916	$	703,267,079


	2011
	Amortized Cost		Gross Unrealized Gains		Gross Unrealized Losses		Estimated Fair Value
Held to Maturity
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	1,000,000	$	53,990	$	—	$	1,053,990
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		56,965,959		2,857,005		—		59,822,964
Corporate securities		249,850		2,756		—		252,606
Residential mortgage-backed securities		273,810		18,986		9		292,787

Totals	$	58,489,619	$	2,932,737	$	9	$	61,422,347


	2011
	Amortized Cost		Gross Unrealized Gains		Gross Unrealized Losses		Estimated Fair Value
Available for Sale
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	59,431,789	$	1,545,768	$	—	$	60,977,557
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		372,663,210		26,252,161		38,789		398,876,582
Corporate securities		62,836,703		1,805,109		528,163		64,113,649
Residential mortgage-backed securities		119,367,152		3,306,932		43,694		122,630,390

Fixed maturities		614,298,854		32,909,970		610,646		646,598,178
Equity securities		7,238,803		606,440		407,705		7,437,538

Totals	$	621,537,657	$	33,516,410	$	1,018,351	$	654,035,716

Summary of amortized cost and estimated fair value of fixed maturities by contractual maturity


	Amortized Cost		Estimated Fair Value
	Amortized Cost		Estimated Fair Value
Held to maturity
Due in one year or less	$	1,000,000	$	1,011,510
Due after one year through five years		31,815,724		32,965,749
Due after five years through ten years		9,093,408		9,552,594
Due after ten years		—		—
Residential mortgage-backed securities		191,064		205,886

Total held to maturity	$	42,100,196	$	43,735,739


Available for sale
Due in one year or less	$	8,942,472	$	9,003,925
Due after one year through five years		62,233,761		64,199,249
Due after five years through ten years		181,558,392		192,859,072
Due after ten years		276,832,736		299,591,597
Residential mortgage-backed securities		125,606,445		128,855,978

Total available for sale	$	655,173,806	$	694,509,821

Schedule of Investments in affiliates


	2012		2011
DFSC	$	36,770,530	$	31,857,246
Other		465,000		465,000

Total	$	37,235,530	$	32,322,246

Summary of financial information


	December 31,
	2012		2011
Balance sheets:
Total assets	$	509,670,100	$	532,938,460


Total liabilities	$	433,490,583	$	466,940,425
Stockholders’ equity		76,179,517		65,998,035


Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	509,670,100	$	532,938,460


	Year Ended December 31,
	2012		2011		2010
Income statements:
Net income (loss)	$	9,401,001	$	4,196,054	$	(556,528	)

Summary of Net investment income, consisting primarily of interest and dividends


	2012			2011			2010
Fixed maturities	$	24,642,897		$	25,044,316		$	23,995,220
Equity securities		85,905			162,934			42,869
Short-term investments		34,482			57,296			91,665
Other		44,874			48,588			46,095

Investment income		24,808,158			25,313,134			24,175,849
Investment expenses		(4,639,239	)		(4,454,955	)		(4,226,135	)

Net investment income	$	20,168,919		$	20,858,179		$	19,949,714

Summary of gross realized gains and losses from investments before applicable income taxes


	2012			2011			2010
Gross realized gains:
Fixed maturities	$	6,730,331		$	4,959,707		$	4,136,455
Equity securities		926,053			8,760,511			1,791,585

		7,656,384			13,720,218			5,928,040

Gross realized losses:
Fixed maturities		42,135			163,316			533,918
Equity securities		754,810			1,275,635			998,402

		796,945			1,438,951			1,532,320

Net realized gains	$	6,859,439		$	12,281,267		$	4,395,720

Change in difference between fair value and cost of investments:
Fixed maturities	$	5,739,506		$	29,646,545		$	(11,571,194	)
Equity securities		(104,660	)		(7,459,314	)		1,547,487

Totals	$	5,634,846		$	22,187,231		$	(10,023,707	)

Summary of Changes in difference between fair value and cost of investments


	Less than 12 months				12 months or longer
	Fair Value		Unrealized Losses		Fair Value		Unrealized Losses
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	12,308,333	$	43,951	$	—	$	—
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		22,134,226		606,065		—		—
Corporate securities		12,271,750		79,136		2,958,520		29,573
Residential mortgage-backed securities		22,491,562		66,443		—		—
Equity securities		2,226,050		106,748		—		—

Totals	$	71,431,921	$	902,343	$	2,958,520	$	29,573

Summary of fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses


	Less than 12 months				12 months or longer
	Fair Value		Unrealized Losses		Fair Value		Unrealized Losses
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	—
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		1,638,135		17,390		540,062		21,400
Corporate securities		10,101,753		528,164		—		—
Residential mortgage-backed securities		7,411,682		43,692		626		9
Equity securities		4,083,863		407,705		—		—

Totals	$	23,235,433	$	996,951	$	540,688	$	21,409

- Definition

Tabular disclosure of investment income derived from investments in debt and equity securities consisting of interest income earned from investments in debt securities and on cash and cash equivalents, dividend income from investments in equity securities, and income or expense derived from the amortization of investment related discounts or premiums, respectively. This item does not include realized or unrealized gains or losses on the sale or holding of investments in debt and equity securities required to be included in earnings for the period or for other than temporary losses related to investments in debt and equity securities which are included in realized losses in the period recognized.

+ References + Details

Fair Value Measurements (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Fair Value Measurements [Abstract]

Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities


	Fair Value Measurements Using
	Fair Value		Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1)		Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	71,311,103	$	—	$	71,311,103	$	—
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		416,986,963		—		416,986,963		—
Corporate securities		77,355,777		—		77,355,777		—
Residential mortgage-backed securities		128,855,978		—		128,855,978		—
Equity securities		8,757,258		5,365,721		3,391,537		—

Totals	$	703,267,079	$	5,365,721	$	697,901,358	$	—


	Fair Value Measurements Using
	Fair Value		Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1)		Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies	$	60,977,557	$	—	$	60,977,557	$	—
Obligations of states and political subdivisions		398,876,582		—		398,876,582		—
Corporate securities		64,113,649		—		64,113,649		—
Residential mortgage-backed securities		122,630,390		—		122,630,390		—
Equity securities		7,437,538		6,178,136		1,259,402		—

Totals	$	654,035,716	$	6,178,136	$	647,857,580	$	—

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs / Reinsurance [Abstract]

Changes in insurance subsidiaries' deferred policy acquisition costs


	2012			2011			2010
Balance, January 1	$	36,424,955		$	34,445,579		$	32,844,179
Acquisition costs deferred		78,010,742			70,550,376			67,955,400
Amortization charged to earnings		(74,314,000	)		(68,571,000	)		(66,354,000	)

Balance, December 31	$	40,121,697		$	36,424,955		$	34,445,579

Property and Equipment (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Property and Equipment [Abstract]

Property and equipment


	2012			2011			Estimated Useful Life
Office equipment	$	8,863,377		$	8,347,493		5-15 years
Automobiles		2,010,762			2,111,218		3 years
Real estate		5,356,705			5,016,722		15-50 years
Software		2,717,206			2,316,617		5 years

		18,948,050			17,792,050
Accumulated depreciation		(12,994,217	)		(11,637,667	)

	$	5,953,833		$	6,154,383

Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses [Abstract]

Summary of insurance subsidiaries' liability for losses and loss expenses


	2012			2011			2010
Balance at January 1	$	442,407,615		$	383,318,672		$	263,598,844
Less reinsurance recoverable		(199,392,836	)		(165,422,373	)		(83,336,726	)

Net balance at January 1		243,014,779			217,896,299			180,262,118

Acquisition of MICO		—			—			26,960,063

Incurred related to:
Current year		325,275,882			340,671,237			277,193,930
Prior years		7,595,702			(168,460	)		(2,885,072	)

Total incurred		332,871,584			340,502,777			274,308,858

Paid related to:
Current year		205,876,331			219,183,102			179,069,304
Prior years		119,074,197			96,201,195			84,565,436

Total paid		324,950,528			315,384,297			263,634,740

Net balance at December 31		250,935,835			243,014,779			217,896,299
Plus reinsurance recoverable		207,891,560			199,392,836			165,422,373

Balance at December 31	$	458,827,395		$	442,407,615		$	383,318,672

Borrowings (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Borrowings [Abstract]

Amount of FHLB of Indianapolis/Pittsburgh stock purchased, collateral pledged and assets related to MICO's/Atlantic States agreement


FHLB stock purchased and owned as part of the agreement	$	252,100
Collateral pledged, at par (carrying value $3,946,091)		4,450,000
Borrowing capacity currently available		3,493,664


FHLB stock purchased and owned as part of the agreement	$	256,400
Collateral pledged, at par		—
Borrowing capacity currently available		—

Reinsurance (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs / Reinsurance [Abstract]

Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums written	$	76,736,510	$	80,265,127	$	24,357,938
Premiums earned		79,680,782		88,297,408		26,551,687
Losses and loss expenses		56,179,284		82,836,893		19,764,441
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		25,126,276		28,054,302		26,991,912
Liability for losses and loss expenses		103,775,940		106,231,527		92,945,915

Total ceded reinsurance transactions with both affiliated and unaffiliated reinsurers


	2012		2011		2010
Premiums earned	$	258,064,301	$	242,186,814	$	144,554,336
Losses and loss expenses		181,995,838		216,776,966		111,080,953
Prepaid reinsurance premiums		111,156,162		106,450,018		89,365,771
Liability for losses and loss expenses		207,891,560		199,392,836		165,442,373

Amounts represent the effect of reinsurance on premiums written


	2012			2011			2010
Direct	$	419,811,847		$	397,810,566		$	279,627,255
Assumed		339,389,274			306,416,861			262,574,572
Ceded		(262,754,201	)		(250,176,390	)		(150,679,539	)

Net premiums written	$	496,446,920		$	454,051,037		$	391,522,288

Amounts represent the effect of reinsurance on premiums earned


	2012			2011			2010
Direct	$	408,846,530		$	385,737,801		$	269,394,549
Assumed		324,219,993			287,919,197			253,189,916
Ceded		(258,064,301	)		(242,186,814	)		(144,554,336	)

Net premiums earned	$	475,002,222		$	431,470,184		$	378,030,129

Income Taxes (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Income Taxes [Abstract]

Provision for income tax


	2012		2011			2010
Current	$	3,614,390	$	(1,269,775	)	$	757,400
Deferred		1,151,250		(5,922,491	)		(2,380,430	)

Federal tax (benefit) provision	$	4,765,640	$	(7,192,266	)	$	(1,623,030	)

Reconciliation of federal income tax rate


	2012			2011			2010
Income (loss) before income taxes	$	27,858,260		$	(6,739,313	)	$	9,844,149

Computed “expected” taxes (benefit)		9,750,391			(2,358,760	)		3,445,452
Tax-exempt interest		(5,824,281	)		(6,038,463	)		(6,183,795	)
Proration		869,551			905,326			923,071
Other, net		(30,021	)		299,631			192,242

Federal income tax (benefit) provision	$	4,765,640		$	(7,192,266	)	$	(1,623,030	)

Schedule of deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities


	2012			2011
Deferred tax assets:
Unearned premium	$	17,613,415		$	16,113,291
Loss reserves		7,275,091			7,339,644
Net operating loss carryforward		1,942,128			4,473,462
Net operating loss carryforward - Le Mars		1,797,194			2,191,532
Alternative minimum tax credit carryforward		7,964,853			4,294,879
Other		1,413,285			634,885

Total gross deferred assets		38,005,966			35,047,693
Less valuation allowance		(440,778	)		(440,778	)

Net deferred tax assets		37,565,188			34,606,915

Deferred tax liabilities:
Deferred policy acquisition costs		14,042,594			12,750,631
Net unrealized gains		14,212,465			11,711,531
Other		3,042,593			225,033

Total gross deferred tax liabilities		31,297,652			24,687,195

Net deferred tax asset	$	6,267,536		$	9,919,720

Stock Compensation Plans (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Stock Compensation Plans [Abstract]

Information regarding activity in our stock option plans


	Number of Options			Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share
Outstanding at December 31, 2009		3,290,099		$	17.98
Granted - 2010		1,787,500			14.00
Forfeited - 2010		(15,500	)		15.69
Expired - 2010		(1,063,432	)		15.76

Outstanding at December 31, 2010		3,998,667			16.80
Granted - 2011		2,321,000			12.52
Forfeited - 2011		(52,000	)		15.63
Expired - 2011		(958,667	)		21.00

Outstanding at December 31, 2011		5,309,000			14.18
Granted - 2012		1,593,600			14.50
Exercised - 2012		(82,102	)		13.01
Forfeited - 2012		(109,673	)		13.84
Expired - 2012		(10,000	)		21.00

Outstanding at December 31, 2012		6,700,825		$	14.27

Exercisable at:
December 31, 2010		1,805,751		$	18.13

December 31, 2011		1,821,333		$	16.42

December 31, 2012		3,072,970		$	15.03

Summary of information about fixed stock options


Exercise Price	Number of Options Outstanding		Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	Number of Options Exercisable
$12.50		2,184,542	9.0 years		728,181
14.00		1,710,683	3.0 years		1,133,789
14.50		1,593,600	10.0 years		—
15.00		3,000	3.0 years		2,000
17.50		1,198,500	0.5 years		1,198,500
18.70		3,000	0.5 years		3,000
21.00		7,500	0.5 years		7,500

Total		6,700,825			3,072,970

Summary of plan activity


	Shares Issued
	Price		Shares
January 1, 2010	$	12.85		11,717
July 1, 2010		10.45		12,403
January 1, 2011		11.02		13,243
July 1, 2011		10.88		11,371
January 1, 2012		11.91		10,523
July 1, 2012		11.29		19,031

Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions [Abstract]

Statutory net income, capital and surplus and dividend


	2012			2011			2010
Atlantic States:
Statutory capital and surplus	$	180,465,658		$	173,505,872		$	191,775,057
Statutory unassigned surplus		124,924,794			113,497,280			131,817,978
Statutory net income (loss)		12,507,540			(7,729,040	)		11,002,447
Southern:
Statutory capital and surplus		58,841,059			60,876,093			63,609,630
Statutory unassigned surplus		7,843,473			9,364,037			12,612,044
Statutory net (loss) income		(1,539,943	)		1,795,195			(2,083,206	)
Le Mars:
Statutory capital and surplus		26,803,140			24,720,327			25,539,580
Statutory unassigned surplus		14,210,400			11,373,158			12,485,531
Statutory net income (loss)		2,423,225			(1,661,327	)		(3,166,242	)
Peninsula:
Statutory capital and surplus		42,471,092			40,744,215			41,932,367
Statutory unassigned surplus		24,671,678			22,601,043			23,580,784
Statutory net income		1,478,823			1,210,247			2,336,947
Sheboygan:
Statutory capital and surplus		10,944,235			10,800,499			11,671,405
Statutory unassigned (deficit) surplus		(1,087,936	)		(1,437,493	)		(479,140	)
Statutory net loss		(33,316	)		(1,237,478	)		(286,613	)
MICO:
Statutory capital and surplus		42,443,200			39,264,423			37,343,663
Statutory unassigned surplus		16,440,388			12,689,880			10,240,870
Statutory net income		2,698,257			2,889,619			3,026,178

Reconciliation of Statutory Filings to Amounts Reported Herein (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Reconciliation of Statutory Filings to Amounts Reported Herein [Abstract]

Reconciliations of statutory net income and capital and surplus


	Year Ended December 31,
	2012			2011			2010
Statutory net income (loss) of insurance subsidiaries	$	17,534,586		$	(4,732,784	)	$	9,163,680
Increases (decreases):
Deferred policy acquisition costs		3,696,742			1,979,376			1,601,400
Deferred federal income taxes		(1,151,250	)		5,922,490			2,380,430
Salvage and subrogation recoverable		772,600			1,273,000			748,000
Amortization of MICO fair value adjustments		(5,416	)		(3,275,777	)		(597,643	)
Consolidating eliminations and adjustments		(5,421,779	)		(15,080,164	)		(12,178,977	)
Parent-only net income		7,667,137			14,366,812			10,350,289

Net income as reported herein	$	23,092,620		$	452,953		$	11,467,179


	Year Ended December 31,
	2012			2011			2010
Statutory capital and surplus of insurance subsidiaries	$	361,968,384		$	349,911,429		$	371,871,702
Increases (decreases):
Deferred policy acquisition costs		40,121,697			36,424,955			34,445,579
Deferred federal income taxes		(25,682,004	)		(21,007,223	)		(14,834,855	)
Salvage and subrogation recoverable		12,000,600			11,228,000			9,955,000
Non-admitted assets and other adjustments, net		2,005,603			1,478,988			4,889,231
Fixed maturities		39,607,340			33,165,065			4,430,879
Parent-only equity and other adjustments		(29,987,526	)		(27,749,622	)		(30,654,726	)

Stockholders’ equity as reported herein	$	400,034,094		$	383,451,592		$	380,102,810

- Definition

Tabular disclosure of how the entity's reporting under GAAP as of the balance sheet date differs from the results based on prescribed and permitted accounting practices of the state or country of domicile in which a relevant statutory filing is made, or differences in results based on the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) prescribed practices, or a combination thereof. Describes the accounting practices used and the related monetary effect on statutory surplus, net income, and risk-based capital. If an insurance enterprise's risk-based capital would have triggered a regulatory event had it not used a permitted practice, that fact is disclosed in the financial statements. Permitted statutory accounting practices include practices not prescribed but allowed by the domiciliary state insurance department regulatory authority.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 210
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.7-03.23(c))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6879938&loc=d3e572229-122910

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 505
-Section 50
-Paragraph 3
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6486098&loc=d3e24746-158529

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 505
-Section 50
-Paragraph 6
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6486098&loc=d3e24790-158529

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 505
-Section 55
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6588579&loc=d3e24938-158530

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 505
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6486098&loc=d3e24708-158529

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 505
-Section 55
-Paragraph 2
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6588579&loc=d3e24959-158530

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 60
-Paragraph 60
-Subparagraph h
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher AICPA
-Name Statement of Position (SOP)
-Number 94-5
-Paragraph 8, 9
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

+ Details

Supplementary Cash Flow Information (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Supplementary Cash Flow Information [Abstract]

Net income taxes and interest paid


	2012		2011		2010
Income taxes	$	1,626,965	$	324,291	$	1,100,000
Interest		2,128,693		1,793,366		705,210

Earnings Per Share (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Earnings Per Share, Basic, by Common Class, Including Two Class Method [Line Items]

Summary of reconciliation of the numerators and denominators used in the basic and diluted per share computations


	Year Ended December 31,
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)	2012		2011		2010
Basic earnings per share:
Numerator:
Allocation of net income	$	18,455	$	390	$	9,183

Denominator:
Weighted-average shares outstanding		20,031,455		19,997,146		19,961,274

Basic earnings per share	$	0.92	$	0.02	$	0.46

Diluted earnings per share:
Numerator:
Allocation of net income	$	18,455	$	390	$	9,183

Denominator:
Number of shares used in basic computation		20,031,455		19,997,146		19,961,274
Weighted-average effect of dilutive securities
Add: Director and employee stock options		274,103		36,499		17,794

Number of shares used in per share computations		20,305,558		20,033,645		19,979,068

Diluted earnings per share	$	0.91	$	0.02	$	0.46


	Year Ended December 31,
(dollars in thousands, except per share data)	2012		2011		2010
Basic and diluted earnings per share:
Numerator:
Allocation of net income	$	4,638	$	63	$	2,284

Denominator:
Weighted-average shares outstanding		5,576,775		5,576,775		5,576,775

Basic and diluted earnings per share	$	0.83	$	0.01	$	0.41

Reconciliation of diluted shares outstanding


	2012		2011		2010
Options excluded from diluted earnings per share		1,209,000		1,238,000		2,219,167

- Definition

Tabular disclosure of the effect of income (loss) on an entity's diluted earnings per share.

+ References + Details

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company [Abstract]

Summary of condensed balance sheets


December 31,	2012		2011
*Assets*
Investment in subsidiaries/affiliates (equity method)	$	470,565	$	445,795
Short-term investments		326		9,258
Cash		805		684
Property and equipment		883		1,224
Other		304		381

Total assets	$	472,883	$	457,342

*Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity*
Liabilities
Cash dividends declared to stockholders	$	3,067	$	2,996
Borrowings under line of credit		52,000		54,500
Subordinated debentures		15,465		15,465
Other		2,316		930

Total liabilities		72,848		73,891

Stockholders’ equity		400,035		383,451

Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	472,883	$	457,342

Summary of condensed statements of income and comprehensive income


Year Ended December 31,	2012		2011			2010
*Statements of Income*
Revenues
Dividends from subsidiaries	$	7,000	$	16,000		$	12,000
Other		5,487		2,995			701

Total revenues		12,487		18,995			12,701

Expenses
Operating expenses		2,323		2,392			2,060
Interest		2,118		1,864			778

Total expenses		4,441		4,256			2,838

Income before income tax expense (benefit) and equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries		8,046		14,739			9,863
Income tax expense (benefit)		378		372			(487	)

Income before equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries		7,668		14,367			10,350
Equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries		15,425		(13,914	)		1,117

Net income	$	23,093	$	453		$	11,467

*Statements of Comprehensive Income*
Net income	$	23,093	$	453		$	11,467

Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax
Unrealized gain (loss) - subsidiaries		4,644		14,972			(6,446	)

Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax		4,644		14,972			(6,446	)

Comprehensive income	$	27,737	$	15,425		$	5,021

Summary of condensed statements of cash flows


Year Ended December 31,	2012			2011			2010
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income	$	23,093		$	453		$	11,467

Adjustments:
Equity in undistributed net (income) loss of subsidiaries		(15,425	)		13,914			(1,117	)
Other		(2,624	)		(396	)		547

Net adjustments		(18,049	)		13,518			(570	)

Net cash provided		5,044			13,971			10,897

Cash flows from investing activities:
Net sale (purchase) of short-term investments		8,932			6,437			(249	)
Net purchase of property and equipment		(147	)		(380	)		(492	)
Investment in subsidiaries		(100	)		(27,777	)		(35,088	)
Other		44			43			20

Net cash used		8,729			(21,677	)		(35,809	)

Cash flows from financing activities:
Cash dividends paid		(12,208	)		(11,874	)		(11,405	)
Issuance of common stock		2,983			1,461			1,199
Payments on line of credit		(6,000	)		(3,000	)		—
Borrowings under line of credit		3,500			22,500			35,000
Repurchase of treasury stock		(1,927	)		(1,538	)		(146	)

Net cash provided (used)		(13,652	)		7,549			24,648

Net change in cash		121			(157	)		(264	)
Cash at beginning of year		684			841			1,105

Cash at end of year	$	805		$	684		$	841

Segment Information (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Segment Information [Abstract]

Summary of financial data by segment


	2012			2011			2010
	(in thousands)
Revenues:
Premiums earned:
Commercial lines	$	174,735		$	152,247		$	117,755
Personal lines		300,272			282,498			260,900

SAP premiums earned		475,007			434,745			378,655
GAAP adjustments		(5	)		(3,275	)		(625	)

GAAP premiums earned		475,002			431,470			378,030
Net investment income		20,169			20,858			19,950
Realized investment gains		6,859			12,281			4,396
Equity in earnings (loss) of DFSC		4,533			2,023			(269	)
Other		8,420			8,386			6,442

Total revenues	$	514,983		$	475,018		$	408,549


	2012			2011			2010
	(in thousands)
Income before income taxes:
Underwriting income (loss):
Commercial lines	$	5,251		$	(6,560	)	$	2,252
Personal lines		(18,236	)		(40,739	)		(22,526	)

SAP underwriting loss		(12,985	)		(47,299	)		(20,274	)
GAAP adjustments		5,545			1,532			2,458

GAAP underwriting loss		(7,440	)		(45,767	)		(17,816	)
Net investment income		20,169			20,858			19,950
Realized investment gains		6,859			12,281			4,396
Equity in earnings (loss) of DFSC		4,533			2,023			(269	)
Other		3,737			3,866			3,583

Income (loss) before income taxes	$	27,858		$	(6,739	)	$	9,844

- Definition

Tabular disclosure of the profit or loss and total assets for each reportable segment. An entity discloses certain information on each reportable segment if the amounts (a) are included in the measure of segment profit or loss reviewed by the chief operating decision maker or (b) are otherwise regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker, even if not included in that measure of segment profit or loss.

+ References + Details

Interim Financial Data (Unaudited) (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Interim Financial Data [Abstract]

Summary of interim financial data


	2012
	First Quarter		Second Quarter		Third Quarter		Fourth Quarter
Net premiums earned	$	114,691,791	$	117,569,122	$	120,916,960	$	121,824,349
Total revenues		125,348,162		127,299,190		130,431,531		131,903,702
Net losses and loss expenses		76,609,219		86,385,353		82,105,094		87,771,918
Net income		8,010,147		2,023,067		6,839,384		6,220,022
Net earnings per common share:
Class A common stock - basic		0.32		0.08		0.27		0.25
Class A common stock - diluted		0.31		0.08		0.27		0.25
Class B common stock - basic and diluted		0.29		0.07		0.25		0.22


	2011
	First Quarter		Second Quarter			Third Quarter		Fourth Quarter
Net premiums earned	$	103,795,279	$	104,991,401		$	108,506,809	$	114,176,695
Total revenues		111,583,442		117,054,498			119,164,471		127,215,208
Net losses and loss expenses		73,079,565		84,195,796			89,411,543		93,815,873
Net income (loss)		2,205,936		(1,693,989	)		819,926		(878,920	)
Net earnings (loss) per common share:
Class A common stock - basic and diluted		0.09		(0.07	)		0.03		(0.03	)
Class B common stock - basic and diluted		0.08		(0.06	)		0.03		(0.03	)

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Details)	12 Months Ended
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Details)	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($) Segment Offices	Dec. 31, 2011 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2010 USD ($)
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Percentage of share in results of pooled business owned by third party	20.00%
Percentage of quota-share agreement with third-party reinsurers	50.00%
Capital contribution to facilitate merging	$ 20,600,000
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Textual) [Abstract]
Number of operating segments \| Segment	4
Number of banking offices \| Offices	13
Outstanding stock percentage	48.20%
Stock ownership percentage owned by third party	51.80%
Voting power percentage of outstanding common stock	66.00%
Acquiring Cost			$ 42,300,000
Depreciation of original cost's value	20.00%
Guarantee in excess	$ 1,000,000
Accumulated other comprehensive income and increased retained earnings	1,800,000
Share-based compensation	$ 52,422	$ 0	$ 0
Percentage of excess dividend paid to class A common stock compared to class B common stock	10.00%
Donegal Mutual [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Percentage of quota-share agreement with third-party reinsurers	25.00%
Capital contribution to facilitate merging	$ 22,100,000	$ 20,600,000
West Bend [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Percentage of quota-share agreement with third-party reinsurers	75.00%
Subsidiaries [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Percentage of share in results of pooled business	80.00%
Common Class A [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Stock ownership percentage held by major shareholder	39.00%
Common Class B [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Stock ownership percentage held by major shareholder	76.00%

Transactions With Affiliates (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Transactions With Affiliates (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	$ 258,064,301	$ 242,186,814	$ 144,554,336
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	111,156,162	106,450,018
Atlantic States ceded [Member] \| Affiliated Entity [Member]
Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	132,876,094	118,812,725	105,376,068
Losses and loss expenses	92,459,147	97,130,846	81,203,625
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	70,572,281	64,214,378	57,783,435
Liability for losses and loss expenses	$ 83,623,652	$ 77,312,645	$ 65,028,781

Transactions With Affiliates (Details 1) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Transactions With Affiliates (Details 1) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Schedule of reinsurance Atlantic States assumed from the pool
Premiums earned	$ 258,064,301	$ 242,186,814	$ 144,554,336
Atlantic States assumed [Member] \| Affiliated Entity [Member]
Schedule of reinsurance Atlantic States assumed from the pool
Premiums earned	298,803,060	266,687,610	238,308,846
Losses and loss expenses	187,415,893	206,907,170	160,256,348
Unearned premiums	157,140,642	141,880,039	125,322,884
Liability for losses and loss expenses	$ 162,863,045	$ 156,941,512	$ 134,580,026

- Definition

Liability as of the balance sheet date for the estimated ultimate cost of settling claims and claim adjustment expense relating to insured events that have occurred on or before the balance sheet date for those liabilities owed to another party as a result of assuming another insurer's primary obligation.

+ References + Details

Transactions With Affiliates (Details 2) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Transactions With Affiliates (Details 2) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Schedule of Southern and Le Mars assumed from Donegal Mutual pursuant to the quota-share reinsurance agreements
Premiums earned	$ 324,219,993	$ 287,919,197	$ 253,189,916
Southern And Le Mars [Member]
Schedule of Southern and Le Mars assumed from Donegal Mutual pursuant to the quota-share reinsurance agreements
Premiums earned	22,189,399	17,757,409	14,516,901
Losses and loss expenses	19,620,587	14,983,405	12,600,094
Unearned premiums	9,926,381	10,225,922	8,124,069
Liability for losses and loss expenses	$ 8,873,592	$ 7,770,053	$ 7,316,879

- Definition

+ References + Details

Transactions With Affiliates (Details 3) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Transactions With Affiliates (Details 3) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	$ 258,064,301	$ 242,186,814	$ 144,554,336
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	111,156,162	106,450,018
Donegal Mutual [Member]
Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	33,046,914	22,123,229	4,516,313
Losses and loss expenses	22,569,557	16,038,590	3,463,112
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	15,457,605	14,181,338	4,590,424
Liability for losses and loss expenses	$ 18,285,182	$ 11,868,641	$ 4,006,231

Transactions With Affiliates (Details 4) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Transactions With Affiliates (Details 4) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	$ 258,064,301	$ 242,186,814	$ 144,554,336
Insurance Subsidiaries [Member]
Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	12,460,511	12,953,452	8,110,268
Losses and loss expenses	10,787,850	20,770,637	6,649,775
Liability for losses and loss expenses	$ 2,206,786	$ 3,980,024	$ 3,441,447

Transactions With Affiliates (Details 5) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Transactions With Affiliates (Details 5) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Schedule of affiliated reinsurance transactions on net premiums, insurance subsidiaries earned
Assumed	$ 320,992,459	$ 284,445,019	$ 252,825,747
Ceded	(178,383,519)	(153,889,406)	(118,002,649)
Net	$ 142,608,940	$ 130,555,613	$ 134,823,098

Transactions With Affiliates (Details 6) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Transactions With Affiliates (Details 6) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Schedule of reinsurance transactions on net losses and loss expenses insurance subsidiaries incurred
Assumed	$ 207,036,480	$ 221,890,575	$ 172,856,442
Ceded	(125,816,554)	(133,940,073)	(91,316,512)
Net	$ 81,219,926	$ 87,950,502	$ 81,539,930

Transactions With Affiliates (Details Textual) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Coverage under catastrophic occurrence	$ 5,000,000
Transactions With affiliates (Textual) [Abstract]
Combined retention for Catastrophe	3,000,000
Charges for services	78,778,333	$ 64,711,860	$ 63,982,793
Accounts with UCB	18,806,576	10,907,454
Interest on UCB accounts	$ 1,591	1,019	1,575
Donegal Mutual [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Percentage of resulting shares of pool	20.00%
Premiums and losses related to certain products	100.00%
Premiums and losses related to business of MICO	25.00%
Period of Donegal Mutual under lease agreement	10 years
Donegal mutual and southern have an excess of loss reinsurance agreement	$ 500,000	350,000	350,000
Atlantic States [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Percentage of resulting shares of pool	80.00%
Coverage under catastrophic occurrence	$ 2,000,000
Southern [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Premiums and losses related to certain products	100.00%
Coverage under catastrophic occurrence	$ 1,500,000
Donegal mutual and southern have an excess of loss reinsurance agreement	$ 500,000	$ 400,000	$ 400,000
Le Mars [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Premiums and losses related to certain products	100.00%
Coverage under catastrophic occurrence	$ 500,000
Insurance Subsidiaries [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Coverage under catastrophic occurrence	$ 5,000,000
Minimum [Member] \| Lease office equipment and automobile [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Lease office equipment and automobiles range	3 years
Maximum [Member] \| Lease office equipment and automobile [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Lease office equipment and automobiles range	10 years

Business Combinations (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($)
Assets acquired:
Goodwill	$ 4,700
Other intangible assets	958
MICO [Member]
Assets acquired:
Investments	68,693
Premiums receivable	27,803
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	25,054
Reinsurance receivable	83,818
Goodwill	4,703
Other intangible assets	958
Other	2,801
Total assets acquired	213,830
Liabilities assumed:
Losses and loss expenses	104,815
Unearned premiums	33,688
Reinsurance balances payable	16,899
Accrued expenses	9,990
Other	6,142
Total liabilities assumed	171,534
Net assets acquired	$ 42,296

Business Combinations (Details 1) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009
Unaudited pro forma historical results
Total revenues	$ 458,231	$ 423,184
Income before income tax benefit	13,619	15,232
Income tax benefit	(741)	(146)
Net income	$ 14,360	$ 15,378
Common Class A [Member]
Unaudited pro forma historical results
Earnings per share - basic and diluted	$ 0.58	$ 0.62
Common Class B [Member]
Unaudited pro forma historical results
Earnings per share - basic and diluted	$ 0.52	$ 0.55

Business Combinations (Details Textual) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
Business Combinations (Details Textual) - USD ($)	Dec. 30, 2010	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Sep. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009	Dec. 31, 2008	Nov. 30, 2010
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity		$ 400,034,094				$ 383,451,592				$ 400,034,094	$ 383,451,592	$ 380,102,810	$ 385,505,699
Total assets		1,336,889,187				1,290,793,478				1,336,889,187	1,290,793,478
Business Combinations (Textual) [Abstract]
Stockholders' equity price												122.00%
Stockholders' equity price in cash															$ 42,300,000
Equity Amount paid to MICO's stockholders												$ 35,100,000
Additional amount payable												7,200,000
Property and casualty insurance premiums												105,400,000	106,600,000
Net premiums earned/Premiums earned		121,824,349	$ 120,916,960	$ 117,569,122	$ 114,691,791	$ 114,176,695	$ 108,506,809	$ 104,991,401	$ 103,795,279	475,002,222	$ 431,470,184	$ 378,030,129	27,000,000
Goodwill		4,700,000								4,700,000
Other intangible assets		958,000								$ 958,000
Losses and loss expenses															$ 1,000,000
Business combinations redundancy reserves description										less than 1.0
Return of any redundancy in excess												50.00%
Final actuarial review of the development of such reserves												3 years
Reinsurance agreements												75.00%		80.00%
Obligations of West Bend		5,000,000								$ 5,000,000
Obligations under the reinsurance agreements		22,600,000								22,600,000
Fair value of assets		26,300,000								26,300,000
Reinsurance agreement with third-party reinsurers												50.00%
Reinsurance agreement with Donegal Mutual												25.00%
Total revenues related to the operations of MICO and Atlantic States	$ 2,400,000
Pro forma income statement adjustments													3,800,000
MICO [Member]
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity													32,000,000
Total assets													$ 224,500,000
Business Combinations (Textual) [Abstract]
Goodwill		4,703,000								4,703,000
Other intangible assets		$ 958,000								$ 958,000

Investments (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Held to Maturity
Held to maturity, at amortized cost	$ 42,100,196	$ 58,489,619
Held to Maturity, Gross Unrealized Gains	1,635,543	2,932,737
Held to Maturity, Gross Unrealized Losses		9
Total Held to Maturity, Estimated Fair Value	43,735,739	61,422,347
Available for Sale
Available for Sale, Amortized Cost	663,836,989	621,537,657
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Gains	40,362,006	33,516,410
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Losses	931,916	1,018,351
Available for Sale, Estimated Fair Value	703,267,079	654,035,716
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies [Member]
Held to Maturity
Held to maturity, at amortized cost	1,000,000	1,000,000
Held to Maturity, Gross Unrealized Gains	11,510	53,990
Total Held to Maturity, Estimated Fair Value	1,011,510	1,053,990
Available for Sale
Available for Sale, Amortized Cost	70,253,846	59,431,789
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Gains	1,101,208	1,545,768
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Losses	43,951
Available for Sale, Estimated Fair Value	71,311,103	60,977,557
Obligations of states and political subdivisions [Member]
Held to Maturity
Held to maturity, at amortized cost	40,909,132	56,965,959
Held to Maturity, Gross Unrealized Gains	1,609,211	2,857,005
Total Held to Maturity, Estimated Fair Value	42,518,343	59,822,964
Available for Sale
Available for Sale, Amortized Cost	385,371,983	372,663,210
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Gains	32,221,045	26,252,161
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Losses	606,065	38,789
Available for Sale, Estimated Fair Value	416,986,963	398,876,582
Corporate securities [Member]
Held to Maturity
Held to maturity, at amortized cost		249,850
Held to Maturity, Gross Unrealized Gains		2,756
Total Held to Maturity, Estimated Fair Value		252,606
Available for Sale
Available for Sale, Amortized Cost	73,941,532	62,836,703
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Gains	3,522,954	1,805,109
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Losses	108,709	528,163
Available for Sale, Estimated Fair Value	77,355,777	64,113,649
Residential mortgage-backed securities [Member]
Held to Maturity
Held to maturity, at amortized cost	191,064	273,810
Held to Maturity, Gross Unrealized Gains	14,822	18,986
Held to Maturity, Gross Unrealized Losses		9
Total Held to Maturity, Estimated Fair Value	205,886	292,787
Available for Sale
Available for Sale, Amortized Cost	125,606,445	119,367,152
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Gains	3,315,976	3,306,932
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Losses	66,443	43,694
Available for Sale, Estimated Fair Value	128,855,978	122,630,390
Fixed maturities [Member]
Available for Sale
Available for Sale, Amortized Cost	655,173,806	614,298,854
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Gains	40,161,183	32,909,970
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Losses	825,168	610,646
Available for Sale, Estimated Fair Value	694,509,821	646,598,178
Equity securities [Member]
Available for Sale
Available for Sale, Amortized Cost	8,663,183	7,238,803
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Gains	200,823	606,440
Available for Sale, Gross Unrealized Losses	106,748	407,705
Available for Sale, Estimated Fair Value	$ 8,757,258	$ 7,437,538

Investments (Details 1) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Held to Maturity
Due in one year or less, Amortized Cost	$ 1,000,000
Due after one year through five years, Amortized Cost	31,815,724
Due after five years through ten years, Amortized Cost	9,093,408
Due after ten years, Amortized Cost
Residential mortgage-backed securities, Amortized Cost	191,064
Total held to maturity, Amortized Cost	42,100,196	$ 58,489,619
Due in one year or less, Estimated Fair Value	1,011,510
Due after one year through five years, Estimated Fair Value	32,965,749
Due after five years through ten years, Estimated Fair Value	9,552,594
Due after ten years, Estimated Fair Value
Residential mortgage-backed securities, Estimated Fair Value	205,886
Total Held to Maturity, Estimated Fair Value	43,735,739	61,422,347
Available for sale
Due in one year or less, Amortized Cost	8,942,472
Due after one year through five years, Amortized Cost	62,233,761
Due after five years through ten years, Amortized Cost	181,558,392
Due after ten years, Amortized Cost	276,832,736
Residential mortgage-backed securities, Amortized Cost	125,606,445
Total available for sale securities, Amortized Cost	655,173,806	614,298,854
Due in one year or less, Estimated Fair Value	9,003,925
Due after one year through five years, Estimated Fair Value	64,199,249
Due after five years through ten years, Estimated Fair Value	192,859,072
Due after ten years, Estimated Fair Value	299,591,597
Residential mortgage-backed securities, Estimated Fair Value	128,855,978
Total available for sale, Estimated Fair Value	$ 694,509,821	$ 646,598,178

Investments (Details 2) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Summary of Investments in affiliates
Total	$ 37,235,530	$ 32,322,246
DFSC [Member]
Summary of Investments in affiliates
Total	36,770,530	31,857,246
Other [Member]
Summary of Investments in affiliates
Total	$ 465,000	$ 465,000

Investments (Details 3) - Donegal Financial Services Corporation [Member] - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Balance sheets:
Total assets	$ 509,670,100	$ 532,938,460
Total liabilities	433,490,583	466,940,425
Stockholders equity	76,179,517	65,998,035
Total liabilities and stockholders equity	509,670,100	532,938,460
Income statements:
Net income (loss)	$ 9,401,001	$ 4,196,054	$ (556,528)

- Definition

The amount of assets reported by an equity method investment of the entity.

+ References

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-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 323
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
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-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
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-Name Accounting Principles Board Opinion (APB)
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Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 08
-Paragraph g
-Subparagraph 1, 2
-Article 4

+ Details

- Definition

The amount of liabilities reported by an equity method investment of the entity.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 323
-SubTopic 10
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+ Details

- Definition

The amount of liabilities and equity reported by an equity method investment of the entity.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 323
-SubTopic 10
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+ Details

- Definition

The amount of net income (loss) reported by an equity method investment of the entity.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 323
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-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
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-Subparagraph 1, 2
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+ Details

Investments (Details 4) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Investments (Details 4) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Summary of Net investment income, consisting primarily of interest and dividends
Investment income	$ 24,808,158	$ 25,313,134	$ 24,175,849
Investment expenses	(4,639,239)	(4,454,955)	(4,226,135)
Net investment income	20,168,919	20,858,179	19,949,714
Fixed maturities [Member]
Summary of Net investment income, consisting primarily of interest and dividends
Investment income	24,642,897	25,044,316	23,995,220
Equity securities [Member]
Summary of Net investment income, consisting primarily of interest and dividends
Investment income	85,905	162,934	42,869
Short-term Investments [Member]
Summary of Net investment income, consisting primarily of interest and dividends
Investment income	34,482	57,296	91,665
Other [Member]
Summary of Net investment income, consisting primarily of interest and dividends
Investment income	$ 44,874	$ 48,588	$ 46,095

- Definition

This item represents investment income derived from investments in debt and equity securities consisting of interest income earned from investments in debt securities and on cash and cash equivalents, dividend income from investments in equity securities, and income or expense derived from the amortization of investment related discounts or premiums, respectively, net of related investment expenses. This item does not include realized or unrealized gains or losses on the sale or holding of investments in debt and equity securities required to be included in earnings for the period or for other than temporary losses related to investments in debt and equity securities which are included in realized losses in the period recognized, and does not include investment income from real or personal property, such as rental income.

+ References + Details

Investments (Details 5) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Investments (Details 5) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Summary of gross realized gains and losses from investments before applicable income taxes
Gross realized gains	$ 7,656,384	$ 13,720,218	$ 5,928,040
Gross realized losses	796,945	1,438,951	1,532,320
Net realized investment gains	6,859,439	12,281,267	4,395,720
Fixed maturities [Member]
Summary of gross realized gains and losses from investments before applicable income taxes
Gross realized gains	6,730,331	4,959,707	4,136,455
Gross realized losses	42,135	163,316	533,918
Equity securities [Member]
Summary of gross realized gains and losses from investments before applicable income taxes
Gross realized gains	926,053	8,760,511	1,791,585
Gross realized losses	$ 754,810	$ 1,275,635	$ 998,402

Investments (Details 6) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Summary of change in difference between fair value and cost of investments
Totals	$ 5,634,846	$ 22,187,231	$ (10,023,707)
Fixed maturities [Member]
Summary of change in difference between fair value and cost of investments
Fixed maturities	5,739,506	29,646,545	(11,571,194)
Equity securities [Member]
Summary of change in difference between fair value and cost of investments
Equity securities	$ (104,660)	$ (7,459,314)	$ 1,547,487

Investments (Details 7) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Summary of fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses
Less than 12 months, Fair Value	$ 71,431,921	$ 23,235,433
Less than 12 months, Unrealized Losses	902,343	996,951
More than 12 months, Fair Value	2,958,520	540,688
More than 12 months, Unrealized Losses	29,573	21,409
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies [Member]
Summary of fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses
Less than 12 months, Fair Value	12,308,333
Less than 12 months, Unrealized Losses	43,951
Obligations of states and political subdivisions [Member]
Summary of fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses
Less than 12 months, Fair Value	22,134,226	1,638,135
Less than 12 months, Unrealized Losses	606,065	17,390
More than 12 months, Fair Value		540,062
More than 12 months, Unrealized Losses		21,400
Corporate securities [Member]
Summary of fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses
Less than 12 months, Fair Value	12,271,750	10,101,753
Less than 12 months, Unrealized Losses	79,136	528,164
Residential mortgage-backed securities [Member]
Summary of fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses
Less than 12 months, Fair Value	22,491,562	7,411,682
Less than 12 months, Unrealized Losses	66,443	43,692
More than 12 months, Fair Value	2,958,520	626
More than 12 months, Unrealized Losses	29,573	9
Equity securities [Member]
Summary of fixed maturities and equity securities with unrealized losses
Less than 12 months, Fair Value	2,226,050	4,083,863
Less than 12 months, Unrealized Losses	$ 106,748	$ 407,705

Investments (Details Textual)	12 Months Ended
Investments (Details Textual)	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($) Securities	Dec. 31, 2011 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2010 USD ($)
Schedule of Investments [Line Items]
Additional capital	$ 20,600,000
Investments (Textual) [Abstract]
Amortized cost of fixed maturities on deposit with various regulatory authorities	$ 10,565,116	$ 10,629,319
Percentage of which the company held security of any issuer	10.00%	10.00%
Percentage decrease in value of individual equity security to assume other than temporary decline in value	20.00%
Time period for which individual security should be in unrealized position of twenty percentage or more to assume it as other than temporary decline	More than six months
Percentage of ownership interest	48.20%
Additional equity investment in DFSC	$ 100,000	$ 20,570,000
Unrealized holding gain (loss) arising during the period, net of income tax (benefit) of $4,833,143, $12,237,669 and ($1,976,358)	9,171,817	23,077,997	$ (3,544,783)
Impairment losses	0	0	0
Sales or transfers, held to maturity	0	0	0
Derivative instruments or hedging activities	0	0	$ 0
Donegal Mutual [Member]
Schedule of Investments [Line Items]
Additional capital	$ 22,100,000	20,600,000
Equity securities [Member]
Schedule of Investments [Line Items]
Number of fixed maturity securities classified as available for sale \| Securities	7
Debt Securities [Member]
Schedule of Investments [Line Items]
Number of fixed maturity securities classified as available for sale \| Securities	46
General obligation bonds [Member] \| Obligations of states and political subdivisions [Member]
Schedule of Investments [Line Items]
Aggregate fair value of bond held	$ 358,500,000	372,200,000
Amortized cost of bond held	332,400,000	348,400,000
Special revenue bond [Member]
Schedule of Investments [Line Items]
Aggregate fair value of bond held	101,000,000	86,500,000
Amortized cost of bond held	$ 93,900,000	$ 81,000,000
Education bonds [Member]
Schedule of Investments [Line Items]
Percentage of investments in special revenue bonds	54.00%	59.00%
Water and sewer utility bonds [Member]
Schedule of Investments [Line Items]
Percentage of investments in special revenue bonds	19.00%	17.00%

Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Changes in insurance subsidiaries' deferred policy acquisition costs
Balance, January 1	$ 36,424,955	$ 34,445,579	$ 32,844,179
Acquisition costs deferred	78,010,742	70,550,376	67,955,400
Amortization charged to earnings	(74,314,000)	(68,571,000)	(66,354,000)
Balance, December 31	$ 40,121,697	$ 36,424,955	$ 34,445,579

- Definition

Amount of deferred policy acquisition costs charged to expense in the period, generally in proportion to related revenue earned, estimated gross profits, or over the customer relationship or some other period.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 30
-Section 35
-Paragraph 11
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=7473040&loc=d3e10157-158409

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 20
-Section 45
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (d)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6480726&loc=d3e6691-158385

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 225
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.7-04.7(a))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6879464&loc=d3e573970-122913

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 30
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6967983&loc=d3e11264-158415

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 97
-Paragraph 22, 23, 24, 25, 26
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 04
-Paragraph 7
-Article 7

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 18
-Article 12

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 16
-Article 12

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 60
-Paragraph 60
-Subparagraph c
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher AICPA
-Name Statement of Position (SOP)
-Number 95-1
-Paragraph 19, 20, 21, 22, 23
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

+ Details

Property and Equipment (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Property and Equipment (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, Gross	$ 18,948,050	$ 17,792,050
Accumulated depreciation	(12,994,217)	(11,637,667)
Property and equipment, Net	5,953,833	6,154,383
Office Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, Gross	$ 8,863,377	8,347,493
Office Equipment [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Lease office equipment and automobiles range	5 years
Office Equipment [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Lease office equipment and automobiles range	15 years
Automobiles [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, Gross	$ 2,010,762	2,111,218
Lease office equipment and automobiles range	3 years
Real Estate [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, Gross	$ 5,356,705	5,016,722
Real Estate [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Lease office equipment and automobiles range	15 years
Real Estate [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Lease office equipment and automobiles range	50 years
Software [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, Gross	$ 2,717,206	$ 2,316,617
Lease office equipment and automobiles range	5 years

Property and Equipment (Details Textual) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Property and Equipment (Details Textual) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Property and Equipment (Textual) [Abstract]
Depreciation expense	$ 944,632	$ 1,000,000	$ 1,200,000

Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009
Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses [Abstract]
Balance at January 1	$ 442,407,615	$ 383,318,672	$ 263,598,844
Less reinsurance recoverable		(199,392,836)	(165,422,373)	$ (83,336,726)
Net balance at January 1	243,014,779	217,896,299	180,262,118
Acquisition of MICO			26,960,063
Incurred related to:
Current year	325,275,882	340,671,237	277,193,930
Prior years	7,595,702	(168,460)	(2,885,072)
Total incurred	332,871,584	340,502,777	274,308,858
Paid related to:
Current year	205,876,331	219,183,102	179,069,304
Prior years	119,074,197	96,201,195	84,565,436
Total paid	324,950,528	315,384,297	263,634,740
Net balance at December 31	250,935,835	243,014,779	217,896,299
Plus reinsurance recoverable	207,891,560	199,392,836	165,422,373
Balance at December 31	$ 458,827,395	$ 442,407,615	$ 383,318,672

Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses (Details Textual) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses (Textual) [Abstract]
Increase (Decrease) in liability for losses and loss expenses of prior years			$ 26,960,063
Percentage of 2010 development	3.10%		1.60%
Insurance Subsidiaries [Member]
Liability for Losses and Loss Expenses (Textual) [Abstract]
Increase (Decrease) in liability for losses and loss expenses of prior years	$ 7,600,000	$ (168,460)	$ (2,900,000)

Borrowings (Details) - Lines of Credit [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($)
Atlantic States [Member] \| Pittsburgh [Member]
Amount of FHLB of Indianapolis/Pittsburgh stock purchased, collateral pledged and assets related to MICO's/Atlantic States agreement
FHLB stock purchased and owned as part of the agreement	$ 256,400
MICO [Member] \| Indianapolis [Member]
Amount of FHLB of Indianapolis/Pittsburgh stock purchased, collateral pledged and assets related to MICO's/Atlantic States agreement
FHLB stock purchased and owned as part of the agreement	252,100
Collateral pledged, at par	4,450,000
Borrowing capacity currently available	$ 3,493,664

Borrowings (Details Textual) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended			12 Months Ended
Borrowings (Details Textual) - USD ($)	May 31, 2011	May 31, 2004	Oct. 31, 2003	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Jun. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Investment in subordinated debentures				$ 20,465,000	$ 20,465,000
Borrowings (Textual) [Abstract]
Percentage commitment fee				0.20%
Revolving credit facility, borrowing interest rate				The credit agreement requires our compliance with certain covenants, which include minimum levels of our net worth, leverage ratio and statutory surplus and the A.M. Best ratings of our insurance subsidiaries. We complied with all requirements of the credit agreement during the year ended December 31, 2012
Revolving line of credit expiration date				Oct. 29, 2033
Debentures mature date				May 24, 2034
Interest paid				$ 250,000	250,000
Debt instrument, description				On October 29, 2003, we received $10.0 million in net proceeds from the issuance of subordinated debentures. The debentures were scheduled to mature on October 29, 2033 and were callable at our option, at par. The debentures carried an interest rate equal to the three-month LIBOR rate plus 3.85%. At December 31, 2012, the interest rate on these debentures was 4.16%.
Debentures, interest rate related to Libor rate description				interest rate equal to the three-month LIBOR rate plus 3.85%
Lines of Credit [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Line of credit that expires date				2015-07
Outstanding borrowings				$ 52,000,000
Line of credit facility remaining borrowing capacity				$ 8,000,000
Interest rate on Borrowings				2.46%
Line of credit, interest rate related to Libor rate description				interest rate equal to M&T’s current prime rate or the then current LIBOR rate plus 2.25%.
Subordinated Debentures [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Debt instrument interest rate effective percentage				3.85%
Net proceeds from the issuance of subordinated debentures		$ 5,000,000	$ 10,000,000
Debt Instrument basis spread on variable rate								5.00%
Three-month LIBOR rate plus 3.85% [Member] \| Subordinated Debentures [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Debt instrument interest rate effective percentage				3.85%
Subordinated Debentures 2034 [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Debt instrument interest rate				4.16%
Payment date of subordinated debentures and liquidated investment in the statutory trust				Feb. 25, 2013
Subordinated Debentures 2034 [Member] \| Subordinated Debentures [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Debt instrument interest rate				4.16%
Subordinated Debentures October 29, 2033 [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Investment in statutory trust				$ 310,000	310,000
Investment in subordinated debentures				10,300,000	10,300,000
Subordinated Debentures May 24, 2034 [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Investment in statutory trust				155,000	155,000
Investment in subordinated debentures				$ 5,200,000	5,200,000
Subordinated Debentures 2033 [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Payment date of subordinated debentures and liquidated investment in the statutory trust				Jan. 28, 2013
Atlantic States [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Debt issued to FHLB in exchange of advance cash				$ 15,000,000
Atlantic States [Member] \| Pittsburgh [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Federal home loan bank borrowing amount outstanding				0	0
Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company [Member] \| Lines of Credit [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Right to request for extension of credit agreement with Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company						$ 60,000,000
Michigan [Member] \| Lines of Credit [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Borrowings							$ 3,500,000	$ 35,000,000
Union National Financial Corporation [Member] \| Lines of Credit [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Right to request for extension of credit agreement	$ 19,000,000
West Bend Mutual Insurance Company [Member] \| Subordinated Debentures [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Purchase of surplus note				5,000,000
MICO [Member] \| Indianapolis [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Federal home loan bank borrowing amount outstanding				0	$ 0
MICO [Member] \| Lines of Credit [Member] \| Indianapolis [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Right to request for extension of credit agreement with Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company				3,493,664
Collateral Pledged at carrying value				$ 3,946,091
Maximum [Member]
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Debt instrument interest rate effective percentage				2.25%

Reinsurance (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Reinsurance (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	$ 258,064,301	$ 242,186,814	$ 144,554,336
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	111,156,162	106,450,018
Unaffiliated Entity [Member]
Ceded reinsurance transactions with unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums written	76,736,510	80,265,127	24,357,938
Premiums earned	79,680,782	88,297,408	26,551,687
Losses and loss expenses	56,179,284	82,836,893	19,764,441
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	25,126,276	28,054,302	26,991,912
Liability for losses and loss expenses	$ 103,775,940	$ 106,231,527	$ 92,945,915

Reinsurance (Details 1) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Reinsurance (Details 1) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Total ceded reinsurance transactions with both affiliated and unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	$ 258,064,301	$ 242,186,814	$ 144,554,336
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	111,156,162	106,450,018
Affiliated Entity and Unaffiliated Entity [Member]
Total ceded reinsurance transactions with both affiliated and unaffiliated reinsurers
Premiums earned	258,064,301	242,186,814	144,554,336
Losses and loss expenses	181,995,838	216,776,966	111,080,953
Prepaid reinsurance premiums	111,156,162	106,450,018	89,365,771
Liability for losses and loss expenses	$ 207,891,560	$ 199,392,836	$ 165,442,373

Reinsurance (Details 2) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Reinsurance (Details 2) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Amounts represent the effect of reinsurance on premiums written
Direct	$ 419,811,847	$ 397,810,566	$ 279,627,255
Assumed	339,389,274	306,416,861	262,574,572
Ceded	(262,754,201)	(250,176,390)	(150,679,539)
Net premiums written	$ 496,446,920	$ 454,051,037	$ 391,522,288

Reinsurance (Details 3) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Reinsurance (Details 3) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Amounts represent the effect of reinsurance on premiums earned
Direct	$ 408,846,530	$ 385,737,801	$ 269,394,549
Assumed	324,219,993	287,919,197	253,189,916
Ceded	(258,064,301)	(242,186,814)	(144,554,336)
Net premiums earned	$ 475,002,222	$ 431,470,184	$ 378,030,129

Reinsurance (Details Textual) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Reinsurance (Details Textual) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Excess of loss reinsured under an agreement	$ 1,000,000
Percentage of accumulation of losses	50.00%
Quota share reinsurance percentage		50.00%	75.00%
Reinsurance (Textual) [Abstract]
Natural disasters, over a set retention	$ 5,000,000
Workers' compensation insurance	$ 10,000,000
Percentage of reinsurer coverage	36.00%
Donegal Mutual [Member]
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Percentage of accumulation of losses	25.00%
Maximum amount of loss coverage under reinsurance agreement of property catastrophe	$ 135,000,000
Insurance Subsidiaries [Member]
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Excess of loss reinsured under an agreement	5,000,000
Excess of loss treaties	$ 40,000,000
Minimum [Member]
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Percentage of accumulation of losses	90.00%
Quota share reinsurance reduced percentage	30.00%	40.00%
Maximum [Member]
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Percentage of accumulation of losses	100.00%
Quota share reinsurance reduced percentage	40.00%	50.00%
Catastrophe Reinsurance [Member]
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Excess of loss reinsured under an agreement	$ 750,000

Income Taxes (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Income Taxes (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Provision for income tax
Current	$ 3,614,390	$ (1,269,775)	$ 757,400
Deferred	1,151,250	(5,922,491)	(2,380,430)
Federal tax (benefit) provision	$ 4,765,640	$ (7,192,266)	$ (1,623,030)

- Definition

The component of income tax expense for the period representing amounts paid or payable (or refundable) as determined by applying the provisions of enacted federal tax law to the domestic taxable Income or Loss from continuing operations.

+ References

+ Details

- Definition

The component of total income tax expense for the period comprised of the increase (decrease) during the period in the entity's domestic deferred tax assets and liabilities attributable to continuing operations as determined by applying the provisions of the federally enacted tax law.

+ References

+ Details

- Definition

The sum of the current income tax expense or benefit and the deferred income tax expense or benefit pertaining to pretax Income or Loss from continuing operations; income tax expense or benefit may include interest and penalties on tax uncertainties based on the entity's accounting policy.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 740
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 9
-Subparagraph (a),(b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6907707&loc=d3e32639-109319

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 740
-SubTopic 10
-Section 45
-Paragraph 25
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=21917399&loc=d3e32247-109318

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 235
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.4-08.(h))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6881521&loc=d3e23780-122690

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 740
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 10
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6907707&loc=d3e32672-109319

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 109
-Paragraph 45, 46
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Section 08
-Paragraph h
-Article 4

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name FASB Interpretation (FIN)
-Number 48
-Paragraph 15, 16, 19
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

+ Details

Income Taxes (Details 1) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Income Taxes (Details 1) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Reconciliation of federal income tax rate
Income (loss) before income taxes	$ 27,858,260	$ (6,739,313)	$ 9,844,149
Computed "expected" taxes (benefit)	9,750,391	(2,358,760)	3,445,452
Tax-exempt interest	(5,824,281)	(6,038,463)	(6,183,795)
Proration	869,551	905,326	923,071
Other, net	(30,021)	299,631	192,242
Federal income tax (benefit) provision	$ 4,765,640	$ (7,192,266)	$ (1,623,030)

Income Taxes (Details 2) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Deferred tax assets:
Unearned premium	$ 17,613,415	$ 16,113,291
Loss reserves	7,275,091	7,339,644
Net operating loss carryforward	1,942,128	4,473,462
Alternative minimum tax credit carryforward	7,964,853	4,294,879
Other	1,413,285	634,885
Total gross deferred assets	38,005,966	35,047,693
Less valuation allowance	(440,778)	(440,778)
Net deferred tax assets	37,565,188	34,606,915
Deferred tax liabilities:
Deferred policy acquisition costs	14,042,594	12,750,631
Net unrealized gains	14,212,465	11,711,531
Other	3,042,593	225,033
Total gross deferred tax liabilities	31,297,652	24,687,195
Net deferred tax asset	6,267,536	9,919,720
Le Mars [Member]
Deferred tax assets:
Net operating loss carryforward	$ 1,797,194	$ 2,191,532

Income Taxes (Details Textual) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Income Taxes (Details Textual) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Income Taxes (Textual) [Abstract]
Operating loss carryforwards	$ 5,500,000
Operating loss carryforwards expiration period	2031
Income Taxes (Additional Textual) [Abstract]
Percentage of amount computed at the statutory federal rate	35.00%	35.00%	35.00%
Deferred tax asset, net	$ 37,565,188	$ 34,606,915
Deferred tax asset, net	6,267,536	9,919,720
Alternative minimum tax credit carryforward	8,000,000
Le Mars [Member]
Income Taxes (Textual) [Abstract]
Valuation allowance related to the portion of operating loss carryforwards	440,778	$ 440,778
Operating loss carryforwards	5,100,000
Operating loss carryforwards annual limitations in amount on use	$ 376,000
Operating loss carryforwards expiration period	2020

Stockholders' Equity (Details) - shares	12 Months Ended
Stockholders' Equity (Details) - shares	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Stockholders Equity (Textual) [Abstract]
Percentage of dividend declared on each share	10.00%
Authority to purchase shares	28,308
Common Class A [Member]
Equity, Class of Treasury Stock [Line Items]
Treasury stock	916,622	781,558
Purchase of shares	135,064	119,257
Purchased shares for class A common stock	300,000
Common Class B [Member]
Equity, Class of Treasury Stock [Line Items]
Treasury stock	72,465	72,465

Stock Compensation Plans (Details) - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
Stock Compensation Plans (Details) - $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Information regarding activity in our stock option plans
Number of Options, Outstanding beginning balance	5,309,000	3,998,667	3,290,099
Number of Options, Granted	1,593,600	2,321,000	1,787,500
Number of Options, Exercised	(82,102)
Number of Options, Forfeited	(109,673)	(52,000)	(15,500)
Number of Options, Expired	(10,000)	(958,667)	(1,063,432)
Number of Options, Outstanding ending balance	6,700,825	5,309,000	3,998,667
Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share, Outstanding Beginning balance	$ 14.18	$ 16.80	$ 17.98
Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share, Granted	14.50	12.52	14.00
Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share, Exercised	13.01
Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share, Forfeited	13.84	15.63	15.69
Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share, Expired	21.00	21.00	15.76
Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share, Outstanding Ending balance	$ 14.27	$ 14.18	$ 16.80
Number of Options, Exercisable	3,072,970	1,821,333	1,805,751
Weighted-Average Exercise Price Per Share, Exercisable	$ 15.03	$ 16.42	$ 18.13

Stock Compensation Plans (Details 1)	12 Months Ended
Stock Compensation Plans (Details 1)	Dec. 31, 2012 $ / shares shares
Summary of information about fixed stock options
Number of Options Outstanding	6,700,825
Number of Options Exercisable	3,072,970
Exercise Price 1 [Member]
Summary of information about fixed stock options
Exercise Price \| $ / shares	$ 12.50
Number of Options Outstanding	2,184,542
Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	9 years
Number of Options Exercisable	728,181
Exercise Price 2 [Member]
Summary of information about fixed stock options
Exercise Price \| $ / shares	$ 14.00
Number of Options Outstanding	1,710,683
Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	3 years
Number of Options Exercisable	1,133,789
Exercise Price 3 [Member]
Summary of information about fixed stock options
Exercise Price \| $ / shares	$ 14.50
Number of Options Outstanding	1,593,600
Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	10 years
Exercise Price 4 [Member]
Summary of information about fixed stock options
Exercise Price \| $ / shares	$ 15.00
Number of Options Outstanding	3,000
Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	3 years
Number of Options Exercisable	2,000
Exercise Price 5 [Member]
Summary of information about fixed stock options
Exercise Price \| $ / shares	$ 17.50
Number of Options Outstanding	1,198,500
Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	6 months
Number of Options Exercisable	1,198,500
Exercise Price 6 [Member]
Summary of information about fixed stock options
Exercise Price \| $ / shares	$ 18.70
Number of Options Outstanding	3,000
Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	6 months
Number of Options Exercisable	3,000
Exercise Price 7 [Member]
Summary of information about fixed stock options
Exercise Price \| $ / shares	$ 21.00
Number of Options Outstanding	7,500
Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Life	6 months
Number of Options Exercisable	7,500

Stock Compensation Plans (Details 2) - $ / shares	1 Months Ended
Stock Compensation Plans (Details 2) - $ / shares	Jul. 31, 2012	Jan. 31, 2012	Jul. 31, 2011	Jan. 31, 2011	Jul. 31, 2010	Jan. 31, 2010
Issue Date One [Member]
Summary of plan activity
Shares Issued, Price						$ 12.85
Shares Issued, Shares						11,717
Issue Date Two [Member]
Summary of plan activity
Shares Issued, Price					$ 10.45
Shares Issued, Shares					12,403
Issue Date Three [Member]
Summary of plan activity
Shares Issued, Price				$ 11.02
Shares Issued, Shares				13,243
Issue Date Four [Member]
Summary of plan activity
Shares Issued, Price			$ 10.88
Shares Issued, Shares			11,371
Issue Date Five [Member]
Summary of plan activity
Shares Issued, Price		$ 11.91
Shares Issued, Shares		10,523
Issue Date Six [Member]
Summary of plan activity
Shares Issued, Price	$ 11.29
Shares Issued, Shares	19,031

Stock Compensation Plans (Details Textual) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Stock Compensation Plans (Details Textual) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2001
Stock Compensation Plans (Textual) [Abstract]
Tax benefit for tax deductions from option exercise	$ 52,422	$ 0	$ 0
Equity Incentive Plan 1996 [Member]
Stock Compensation Plans (Textual) [Abstract]
Common stock available for issuance to employees/directors and those of the subsidiaries and affiliates	2,666,667
Stock available for issuance	4,000,000
Equity Incentive Plan [Member]
Stock Compensation Plans (Textual) [Abstract]
Common stock available for issuance to employees/directors and those of the subsidiaries and affiliates	355,556
Common stock available for issuance to employees of subsidiaries and affiliates under identical plan in 2011	3,500,000	3,500,000
Exercisable period of stock options	10 years
Common stock available for issuance to directors and those of the subsidiaries and affiliates under identical plan in 2011	4,000,000	400,000
Restricted shares issued to directors	400
Weighted-average grant date fair value of options granted	$ 2.85	$ 1.90	$ 1.26
Fair value of risk-free interest rate	0.43%	0.75%	1.04%
Expected life	5 years	5 years	3 years
Expected volatility	33.00%	31.00%	29.00%
Expected dividend yield	3.00%	4.00%	4.00%
Compensation expense for stock compensation plans against income before income taxes	$ 420,735	$ 283,811	$ 46,733
Income tax benefit	143,050	96,496	15,889
Unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested share-based compensation granted under the plan	$ 1,200,000	929,679
Weighted average period	8 years 10 months 24 days
Implied dividends	$ 2,500,000	2,300,000	1,300,000
Cash from option exercises	1,100,000	$ 0	$ 0
Tax benefit for tax deductions from option exercise	$ 52,422
Shares available for future option grants	40,936
Equity Incentive Plan [Member] \| Restricted Stock [Member]
Stock Compensation Plans (Textual) [Abstract]
Additional issued shares	6,800	5,598	5,598
Employee Stock Purchase Plan [Member]
Stock Compensation Plans (Textual) [Abstract]
Common stock available for issuance to employees/directors and those of the subsidiaries and affiliates	533,333	300,000
Exercisable period of stock options		10 years
Additional issued shares	16,485
Additional issued share price	$ 11.93
Percentage of purchase price of shares	85.00%
Agency Stock Purchase Plan [Member]
Stock Compensation Plans (Textual) [Abstract]
Common stock available for issuance to employees/directors and those of the subsidiaries and affiliates		300,000		533,333
Additional issued shares	70,366	66,260	56,879
Number of trading days of subscription period	10 days
Investment	$ 12,000
Percentage of purchase price of shares	90.00%

Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Statutory net income, capital and surplus and dividend restrictions
Statutory capital and surplus	$ 361,968,384	$ 349,911,429	$ 371,871,702
Statutory net income (loss)	17,534,586	(4,732,784)	9,163,680
Atlantic States [Member]
Statutory net income, capital and surplus and dividend restrictions
Statutory capital and surplus	180,465,658	173,505,872	191,775,057
Statutory unassigned (deficit) surplus	124,924,794	113,497,280	131,817,978
Statutory net income (loss)	12,507,540	(7,729,040)	11,002,447
Southern [Member]
Statutory net income, capital and surplus and dividend restrictions
Statutory capital and surplus	58,841,059	60,876,093	63,609,630
Statutory unassigned (deficit) surplus	7,843,473	9,364,037	12,612,044
Statutory net income (loss)	(1,539,943)	1,795,195	(2,083,206)
Le Mars [Member]
Statutory net income, capital and surplus and dividend restrictions
Statutory capital and surplus	26,803,140	24,720,327	25,539,580
Statutory unassigned (deficit) surplus	14,210,400	11,373,158	12,485,531
Statutory net income (loss)	2,423,225	(1,661,327)	(3,166,242)
Peninsula [Member]
Statutory net income, capital and surplus and dividend restrictions
Statutory capital and surplus	42,471,092	40,744,215	41,932,367
Statutory unassigned (deficit) surplus	24,671,678	22,601,043	23,580,784
Statutory net income (loss)	1,478,823	1,210,247	2,336,947
Sheboygan [Member]
Statutory net income, capital and surplus and dividend restrictions
Statutory capital and surplus	10,944,235	10,800,499	11,671,405
Statutory unassigned (deficit) surplus	(1,087,936)	(1,437,493)	(479,140)
Statutory net income (loss)	(33,316)	(1,237,478)	(286,613)
MICO [Member]
Statutory net income, capital and surplus and dividend restrictions
Statutory capital and surplus	42,443,200	39,264,423	37,343,663
Statutory unassigned (deficit) surplus	16,440,388	12,689,880	10,240,870
Statutory net income (loss)	$ 2,698,257	$ 2,889,619	$ 3,026,178

Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Details Textual) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($)
Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Textual) [Abstract]
Amounts available for distribution as dividends	$ 29.2
Atlantic States [Member]
Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Textual) [Abstract]
Amounts available for distribution as dividends	18.0
Southern [Member]
Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Textual) [Abstract]
Amounts available for distribution as dividends	0.0
Le Mars [Member]
Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Textual) [Abstract]
Amounts available for distribution as dividends	2.7
Peninsula [Member]
Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Textual) [Abstract]
Amounts available for distribution as dividends	4.3
Sheboygan [Member]
Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Textual) [Abstract]
Amounts available for distribution as dividends	0.0
MICO [Member]
Statutory Net Income, Capital and Surplus and Dividend Restrictions (Textual) [Abstract]
Amounts available for distribution as dividends	$ 4.2

Reconciliation of Statutory Filings to Amounts Reported Herein (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Sep. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009
Reconciliation of statutory net income loss and capital and surplus
Statutory net income (loss) of insurance subsidiaries									$ 17,534,586	$ (4,732,784)	$ 9,163,680
Increases (decreases):
Deferred policy acquisition costs									3,696,742	1,979,376	1,601,400
Deferred federal income taxes									(1,151,250)	5,922,490	2,380,430
Salvage and subrogation recoverable									772,600	1,273,000	748,000
Amortization of MICO fair value adjustments									(5,416)	(3,275,777)	(597,643)
Consolidating eliminations and adjustments									(5,421,779)	(15,080,164)	(12,178,977)
Parent-only net income									7,667,137	14,366,812	10,350,289
Net income	$ 6,220,022	$ 6,839,384	$ 2,023,067	$ 8,010,147	$ (878,920)	$ 819,926	$ (1,693,989)	$ 2,205,936	23,092,620	452,953	11,467,179
Statutory capital and surplus of insurance subsidiaries	361,968,384				349,911,429				361,968,384	349,911,429	371,871,702
Increases (decreases):
Deferred policy acquisition costs	40,121,697				36,424,955				40,121,697	36,424,955	34,445,579
Deferred federal income taxes	(25,682,004)				(21,007,223)				(25,682,004)	(21,007,223)	(14,834,855)
Salvage and subrogation recoverable	12,000,600				11,228,000				12,000,600	11,228,000	9,955,000
Non-admitted assets and other adjustments, net	2,005,603				1,478,988				2,005,603	1,478,988	4,889,231
Fixed maturities	39,607,340				33,165,065				39,607,340	33,165,065	4,430,879
Parent-only equity and other adjustments	(29,987,526)				(27,749,622)				(29,987,526)	(27,749,622)	(30,654,726)
Total stockholders' equity	$ 400,034,094				$ 383,451,592				$ 400,034,094	$ 383,451,592	$ 380,102,810	$ 385,505,699

Supplementary Cash Flow Information (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
Supplementary Cash Flow Information (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Summary of net income taxes and interest paid
Income taxes	$ 1,626,965	$ 324,291	$ 1,100,000
Interest	$ 2,128,693	$ 1,793,366	$ 705,210

Earnings Per Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Sep. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Common Class A [Member]
Numerator:
Allocation of net income									$ 18,455	$ 390	$ 9,183
Denominator:
Weighted-average shares outstanding									20,031,455	19,997,146	19,961,274
Basic earnings per share	$ 0.25	$ 0.27	$ 0.08	$ 0.32					$ 0.92	$ 0.02	$ 0.46
Basic and diluted earnings per share					$ (0.03)	$ 0.03	$ (0.07)	$ 0.09
Numerator:
Allocation of net income									$ 18,455	$ 390	$ 9,183
Denominator:
Number of shares used in basic computation									20,031,455	19,997,146	19,961,274
Weighted-average effect of dilutive securities
Add: Director and employee stock options									274,103	36,499	17,794
Number of shares used in per share computations									20,305,558	20,033,645	19,979,068
Diluted earnings per share	0.25	0.27	0.08	0.31					$ 0.91	$ 0.02	$ 0.46
Common Class B [Member]
Numerator:
Allocation of net income									$ 4,638	$ 63	$ 2,284
Denominator:
Weighted-average shares outstanding									5,576,775	5,576,775	5,576,775
Basic earnings per share									$ 0.83	$ 0.01	$ 0.41
Basic and diluted earnings per share	$ 0.22	$ 0.25	$ 0.07	$ 0.29	$ (0.03)	$ 0.03	$ (0.06)	$ 0.08	$ 0.83	$ 0.01	$ 0.41
Denominator:
Number of shares used in basic computation									5,576,775	5,576,775	5,576,775
Weighted-average effect of dilutive securities
Diluted earnings per share									$ 0.83	$ 0.01	$ 0.41

Earnings Per Share (Details 1) - shares	12 Months Ended
Earnings Per Share (Details 1) - shares	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Basic and diluted net income per share
Options excluded from diluted earnings per share	1,209,000	1,238,000	2,219,167

- Definition

Securities (including those issuable pursuant to contingent stock agreements) that could potentially dilute basic earnings per share (EPS) or earnings per unit (EPU) in the future that were not included in the computation of diluted EPS or EPU because to do so would increase EPS or EPU amounts or decrease loss per share or unit amounts for the period presented.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Glossary Antidilution
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6505113

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Glossary Diluted Earnings Per Share
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6510752

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Glossary Contingent Stock Agreement
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6508534

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 260
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6371337&loc=d3e3550-109257

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 128
-Paragraph 40
-Subparagraph c
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 128
-Paragraph 13, 14
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF)
-Number 07-4
-Paragraph 4
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)
-Number 128
-Paragraph 171
-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

+ Details

Earnings Per Share (Details Textual)	12 Months Ended
Earnings Per Share (Details Textual)	Dec. 31, 2012
Common Class A [Member]
Earnings Per Share (Textual) [Abstract]
Common stock payable interest rate	10.00%

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009
Assets
Cash	$ 19,801,290	$ 13,245,378	$ 16,342,212	$ 12,923,898
Property and equipment	5,953,833	6,154,383
Other	1,154,388	1,285,089
Total assets	1,336,889,187	1,290,793,478
Liabilities
Cash dividends declared to stockholders	3,066,532	2,996,076
Borrowings under line of credit	52,000,000	54,500,000
Subordinated debentures	20,465,000	20,465,000
Other	2,298,891	2,104,702
Total liabilities	936,855,093	907,341,886
Stockholders' equity	400,034,094	383,451,592	$ 380,102,810	$ 385,505,699
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	1,336,889,187	1,290,793,478
Parent Company [Member]
Assets
Investment in subsidiaries/affiliates (equity method)	470,565,000	445,795,000
Short-term investments	326,000	9,258,000
Cash	805,000	684,000
Property and equipment	883,000	1,224,000
Other	304,000	381,000
Total assets	472,883,000	457,342,000
Liabilities
Cash dividends declared to stockholders	3,067,000	2,996,000
Borrowings under line of credit	52,000,000	54,500,000
Subordinated debentures	15,465,000	15,465,000
Other	2,316,000	930,000
Total liabilities	72,848,000	73,891,000
Stockholders' equity	400,035,000	383,451,000
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	$ 472,883,000	$ 457,342,000

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company (Details 1) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Sep. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Revenues
Total revenues	$ 131,903,702	$ 130,431,531	$ 127,299,190	$ 125,348,162	$ 127,215,208	$ 119,164,471	$ 117,054,498	$ 111,583,442	$ 514,982,585	$ 475,017,619	$ 408,549,446
Expenses
Interest									2,358,711	2,126,784	799,578
Total expenses	87,771,918	82,105,094	86,385,353	76,609,219	93,815,873	89,411,543	84,195,796	73,079,565	487,124,325	481,756,932	398,705,297
Income before income tax expense (benefit) and equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries									27,858,260	(6,739,313)	9,844,149
Income tax expense (benefit)									4,765,640	(7,192,266)	(1,623,030)
Equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries									4,533,257	2,023,127	(268,341)
Net income	6,220,022	6,839,384	2,023,067	8,010,147	(878,920)	819,926	(1,693,989)	2,205,936	23,092,620	452,953	11,467,179
Statements of Comprehensive Income
Net income	$ 6,220,022	$ 6,839,384	$ 2,023,067	$ 8,010,147	$ (878,920)	$ 819,926	$ (1,693,989)	$ 2,205,936	23,092,620	452,953	11,467,179
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax
Unrealized gain (loss) - subsidiaries									(9,171,817)	(23,077,997)	3,544,783
Comprehensive income									27,737,207	15,425,314	5,021,221
Parent Company [Member]
Revenues
Dividends from subsidiaries									7,000,000	16,000,000	12,000,000
Other									5,487,000	2,995,000	701,000
Total revenues									12,487,000	18,995,000	12,701,000
Expenses
Operating expenses									2,323,000	2,392,000	2,060,000
Interest									2,118,000	1,864,000	778,000
Total expenses									4,441,000	4,256,000	2,838,000
Income before income tax expense (benefit) and equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries									8,046,000	14,739,000	9,863,000
Income tax expense (benefit)									378,000	372,000	(487,000)
Income before equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries									7,668,000	14,367,000	10,350,000
Equity in undistributed net income (loss) of subsidiaries									15,425,000	(13,914,000)	1,117,000
Net income									23,093,000	453,000	11,467,000
Statements of Comprehensive Income
Net income									23,093,000	453,000	11,467,000
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax
Unrealized gain (loss) - subsidiaries									4,644,000	14,972,000	(6,446,000)
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax									4,644,000	14,972,000	(6,446,000)
Comprehensive income									$ 27,737,000	$ 15,425,000	$ 5,021,000

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company (Details 2) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Sep. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income	$ 6,220,022	$ 6,839,384	$ 2,023,067	$ 8,010,147	$ (878,920)	$ 819,926	$ (1,693,989)	$ 2,205,936	$ 23,092,620	$ 452,953	$ 11,467,179
Adjustments:
Net adjustments									1,872,005	20,628,358	10,537,624
Net cash provided by operating activities									24,964,625	21,081,311	22,004,803
Cash flows from investing activities:
Net sale (purchase) of short-term investments									16,635,183	314,583	16,052,089
Net increase in investment in affiliates									(100,000)	(20,570,000)
Net cash used in investing activities									(4,757,930)	(31,109,363)	(43,190,044)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Cash dividends paid									(12,208,509)	(11,874,367)	(11,405,268)
Issuance of common stock									2,983,399	1,460,543	1,199,422
Payments on line of credit									(6,000,000)	(3,617,371)
Borrowings under line of credit									3,500,000	22,500,000	34,955,088
Purchase of treasury stock									(1,925,673)	(1,537,587)	(145,687)
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities									(13,650,783)	6,931,218	24,603,555
Net change in cash									6,555,912	(3,096,834)	3,418,314
Parent Company [Member]
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income									23,093,000	453,000	11,467,000
Adjustments:
Equity in undistributed net (income) loss of subsidiaries									(15,425,000)	13,914,000	(1,117,000)
Other									(2,624,000)	(396,000)	547,000
Net adjustments									(18,049,000)	13,518,000	(570,000)
Net cash provided by operating activities									5,044,000	13,971,000	10,897,000
Cash flows from investing activities:
Net sale (purchase) of short-term investments									8,932,000	6,437,000	(249,000)
Net purchase of property and equipment									(147,000)	(380,000)	(492,000)
Net increase in investment in affiliates									(100,000)	(27,777,000)	(35,088,000)
Other									44,000	43,000	20,000
Net cash used in investing activities									8,729,000	(21,677,000)	(35,809,000)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Cash dividends paid									(12,208,000)	(11,874,000)	(11,405,000)
Issuance of common stock									2,983,000	1,461,000	1,199,000
Payments on line of credit									(6,000,000)	(3,000,000)
Borrowings under line of credit									3,500,000	22,500,000	35,000,000
Purchase of treasury stock									(1,927,000)	(1,538,000)	(146,000)
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities									(13,652,000)	7,549,000	24,648,000
Net change in cash									121,000	(157,000)	(264,000)
Cash at beginning of year				$ 684,000				$ 841,000	684,000	841,000	1,105,000
Cash at end of year	$ 805,000				$ 684,000				$ 805,000	$ 684,000	$ 841,000

Segment Information (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
Segment Information (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Sep. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009
Revenues
Net premiums earned/Premiums earned	$ 121,824,349	$ 120,916,960	$ 117,569,122	$ 114,691,791	$ 114,176,695	$ 108,506,809	$ 104,991,401	$ 103,795,279	$ 475,002,222	$ 431,470,184	$ 378,030,129	$ 27,000,000
GAAP adjustments									(5,000)	(3,275,000)	(625,000)
GAAP premiums earned									475,002,000	431,470,000	378,030,000
Net investment income									20,168,919	20,858,179	19,949,714
Realized investment gains									6,859,439	12,281,267	4,395,720
Equity in earnings (loss) of DFSC									4,533,257	2,023,127	(268,341)
Other									8,420,000	8,386,000	6,442,000
Total revenues	$ 131,903,702	$ 130,431,531	$ 127,299,190	$ 125,348,162	$ 127,215,208	$ 119,164,471	$ 117,054,498	$ 111,583,442	514,982,585	475,017,619	408,549,446
Underwriting income (loss):
SAP underwriting loss									(12,985,000)	(47,299,000)	(20,274,000)
GAAP adjustments									5,545,000	1,532,000	2,458,000
GAAP underwriting loss									(7,440,000)	(45,767,000)	(17,816,000)
Net investment income									20,168,919	20,858,179	19,949,714
Realized investment gains									6,859,439	12,281,267	4,395,720
Equity in earnings (loss) of DFSC									4,533,257	2,023,127	(268,341)
Other									3,737,000	3,866,000	3,583,000
Income (loss) before income taxes									27,858,260	(6,739,313)	9,844,149
Commercial Lines [Member]
Revenues
Net premiums earned/Premiums earned									174,735,000	152,247,000	117,755,000
Underwriting income (loss):
GAAP underwriting loss									5,251,000	(6,560,000)	2,252,000
Personal Lines [Member]
Revenues
Net premiums earned/Premiums earned									300,272,000	282,498,000	260,900,000
Underwriting income (loss):
GAAP underwriting loss									$ (18,236,000)	$ (40,739,000)	$ (22,526,000)

Guaranty Fund and Other Insurance-Related Assessments (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Guaranty Fund and Other Insurance-Related Assessments (Textual) [Abstract]
Insurance subsidiaries' liabilities for guaranty fund and other insurance	$ 1,403,829	$ 1,812,078
Surcharges collected by insurance subsidiaries	$ 433,994	$ 548,644

Interim Financial Data (Unaudited) (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
Interim Financial Data (Unaudited) (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Sep. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009
Summary of interim financial data
Net premiums earned/Premiums earned	$ 121,824,349	$ 120,916,960	$ 117,569,122	$ 114,691,791	$ 114,176,695	$ 108,506,809	$ 104,991,401	$ 103,795,279	$ 475,002,222	$ 431,470,184	$ 378,030,129	$ 27,000,000
Total revenues	131,903,702	130,431,531	127,299,190	125,348,162	127,215,208	119,164,471	117,054,498	111,583,442	514,982,585	475,017,619	408,549,446
Net losses and loss expenses	87,771,918	82,105,094	86,385,353	76,609,219	93,815,873	89,411,543	84,195,796	73,079,565	487,124,325	481,756,932	398,705,297
Net income (loss)	$ 6,220,022	$ 6,839,384	$ 2,023,067	$ 8,010,147	$ (878,920)	$ 819,926	$ (1,693,989)	$ 2,205,936	$ 23,092,620	$ 452,953	$ 11,467,179
Common Class A [Member]
Net earnings (loss) per common share:
Earnings per share, Basic	$ 0.25	$ 0.27	$ 0.08	$ 0.32					$ 0.92	$ 0.02	$ 0.46
Earnings per share, Diluted	0.25	0.27	0.08	0.31					0.91	0.02	0.46
Common stock - basic and diluted					$ (0.03)	$ 0.03	$ (0.07)	$ 0.09
Common Class B [Member]
Net earnings (loss) per common share:
Earnings per share, Basic									0.83	0.01	0.41
Earnings per share, Diluted									0.83	0.01	0.41
Common stock - basic and diluted	$ 0.22	$ 0.25	$ 0.07	$ 0.29	$ (0.03)	$ 0.03	$ (0.06)	$ 0.08	$ 0.83	$ 0.01	$ 0.41

Supplementary Insurance Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Supplementary Insurance Information, by Segment [Line Items]
Net Earned Premiums	$ 475,002	$ 431,470	$ 378,030
Net Investment Income	20,169	20,858	19,950
Net Losses And Loss Expenses	332,872	340,503	274,309
Amortization of Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	74,314	68,571	66,354
Other Underwriting Expenses	73,915	66,924	54,565
Net Premiums Written	496,447	454,051	391,522
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	40,122	36,425
Liability For Losses And Loss Expenses	458,827	442,408
Unearned Premiums	363,088	336,937
Other Policy Claims and Benefits Payable
Personal lines [Member]
Supplementary Insurance Information, by Segment [Line Items]
Net Earned Premiums	300,269	280,370	260,469
Net Losses And Loss Expenses	218,502	232,141	196,008
Amortization of Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	46,977	44,558	45,719
Other Underwriting Expenses	46,725	43,487	37,596
Net Premiums Written	308,571	291,065	268,047
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	24,956	23,385
Liability For Losses And Loss Expenses	201,884	207,047
Unearned Premiums	225,841	216,314
Other Policy Claims and Benefits Payable
Commercial lines [Member]
Supplementary Insurance Information, by Segment [Line Items]
Net Earned Premiums	174,733	151,100	117,561
Net Losses And Loss Expenses	114,370	108,362	78,301
Amortization of Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	27,337	24,013	20,635
Other Underwriting Expenses	27,190	23,437	16,969
Net Premiums Written	187,876	162,986	123,475
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs	15,166	13,040
Liability For Losses And Loss Expenses	256,943	235,361
Unearned Premiums	137,247	120,623
Other Policy Claims and Benefits Payable
Investments [Member]
Supplementary Insurance Information, by Segment [Line Items]
Net Investment Income	20,169	20,858	$ 19,950
Other Policy Claims and Benefits Payable

Fair Value Measurements (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	$ 703,267,079	$ 654,035,716
Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	703,267,079	654,035,716
Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	5,365,721	6,178,136
Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	697,901,358	647,857,580
Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	71,311,103	60,977,557
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies [Member] \| Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	71,311,103	60,977,557
U.S. Treasury securities and obligations of U.S. government corporations and agencies [Member] \| Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure
Obligations of states and political subdivisions [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	416,986,963	398,876,582
Obligations of states and political subdivisions [Member] \| Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	416,986,963	398,876,582
Obligations of states and political subdivisions [Member] \| Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure
Corporate securities [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	77,355,777	64,113,649
Corporate securities [Member] \| Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	77,355,777	64,113,649
Corporate securities [Member] \| Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure
Residential mortgage-backed securities [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	128,855,978	122,630,390
Residential mortgage-backed securities [Member] \| Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	128,855,978	122,630,390
Residential mortgage-backed securities [Member] \| Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure
Equity securities [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	8,757,258	7,437,538
Equity securities [Member] \| Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	5,365,721	6,178,136
Equity securities [Member] \| Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure	3,391,537	1,259,402
Equity securities [Member] \| Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) [Member] \| Assets and liabilities on recurring basis [Member]
Fair value measurements for investments in available-for-sale fixed maturity and equity securities
Available-for-sale Securities, Fair Value Disclosure