Document and Entity Information	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2013	Apr. 16, 2013 Class A Common Stock	Apr. 16, 2013 Class B Common Stock
Class Of Stock [Line Items]
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2013
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Registrant Name	HUBBELL INCORPORATED
Entity Central Index Key	0000048898
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	Yes
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock Shares Outstanding		7,167,506	52,188,953
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2013
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q1