Investments (Details 3) (Donegal Financial Services Corporation [Member], USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Donegal Financial Services Corporation [Member]
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)