Consolidated Statements of Income (USD $)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2012	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2012
Revenues:
Net premiums earned	$ 130,645,011	$ 120,916,960	$ 382,310,380	$ 353,177,873
Investment income, net of investment expenses	4,624,287	4,715,295	14,110,288	14,724,305
Net realized investment gains	349,164	1,312,137	2,943,710	5,150,450
Lease income	212,581	235,734	638,535	727,705
Installment payment fees	1,768,537	1,914,587	5,212,420	5,676,957
Equity in earnings of Donegal Financial Services Corporation	735,380	1,336,818	2,499,854	3,621,593
Total revenues	138,334,960	130,431,531	407,715,187	383,078,883
Expenses:
Net losses and loss expenses	84,882,734	82,105,094	259,935,100	245,099,666
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs	20,766,000	18,864,000	60,236,000	54,980,000
Other underwriting expenses	21,454,770	19,130,875	61,335,688	57,617,438
Policyholder dividends	456,675	401,531	1,272,530	800,015
Interest	431,899	584,109	1,252,747	1,785,108
Other expenses	828,674	473,240	3,223,467	1,961,158
Total expenses	128,820,752	121,558,849	387,255,532	362,243,385
Income before income tax expense	9,514,208	8,872,682	20,459,655	20,835,498
Income tax expense	1,860,474	2,033,298	3,701,498	3,962,900
Net income	$ 7,653,734	$ 6,839,384	$ 16,758,157	$ 16,872,598
Common Class A [Member]
Earnings per common share:
Common stock - basic and diluted	$ 0.30	$ 0.27
Common stock - basic	$ 0.30	$ 0.27	$ 0.66	$ 0.67
Common stock - diluted	$ 0.30	$ 0.27	$ 0.65	$ 0.66
Common Class B [Member]
Earnings per common share:
Common stock - basic and diluted	$ 0.27	$ 0.25	$ 0.60	$ 0.61
Common stock - basic	$ 0.27	$ 0.25	$ 0.60	$ 0.61
Common stock - diluted	$ 0.27	$ 0.25	$ 0.60	$ 0.61