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Nature of Operations and Basis of Presentation
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2011
Nature of Operations and Basis of Presentation [Abstract]  
NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

NOTE 1 – NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

Nature of Operations

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (“UIH”) is a Delaware corporation originally incorporated as Universal Heights, Inc. in November 1990. UIH and its wholly-owned subsidiaries (the “Company”) is a vertically integrated insurance company performing all aspects of insurance underwriting, distribution and claims. Through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, including Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company (“UPCIC”) and American Platinum Property and Casualty Insurance Company (“APPCIC”), collectively referred to as the (“Insurance Entities”), the Company is principally engaged in the property and casualty insurance business offered primarily through a network of independent agents. Risk from catastrophic losses is managed through the use of reinsurance agreements. The Company’s primary product is homeowners’ insurance currently offered in five states, including Florida, where a vast majority of the Company’s policies are in force. See NOTE 5, INSURANCE OPERATIONS, for more information regarding the Company’s insurance operations.

The Company generates revenues primarily from the collection of premiums and the investment of those premiums. Other significant sources of revenue include commissions collected from reinsurers and policy fees.