Net Loss and LAE excluding the effects of current year catastrophe losses and reserve development (underlying loss and LAE) is a non-GAAP measure which is computed by subtracting current year catastrophe losses and prior year reserve development from loss and LAE. We use underlying loss and LAE figures to analyze our loss trends that may be impacted by current year catastrophe losses and prior year development on our reserves. As discussed previously, these two items can have a significant impact on our loss trend in a given period. The Company believes it is useful for investors to evaluate these components separately and in the aggregate when reviewing the Company's performance. The most direct comparable GAAP measure is net loss and LAE. The underlying loss and LAE measure should not be considered a substitute for net losses and LAE and does not reflect the overall profitability of our business.
During the third quarter of 2017, our catastrophe losses included claims from Hurricane Harvey, which made landfall as a category 4 storm in Texas, and Hurricane Irma, which was also a category 4 storm making landfall in Florida. Our catastrophe excess of loss reinsurance limits retained losses to $91,000,000 in total for these two events, which was further reduced to $83,000,000 by our quota share reinsurance.
Loss and LAE increased $115,245,000, or 62.9%, to $298,353,000 for the year ended December 31, 2016 from $183,108,000 for the year ended December 31, 2015. Loss and LAE expense as a percentage of net earned premiums increased 10.8 points to 65.3% for the year, compared to 54.5% for the prior year. Excluding catastrophe losses and reserve development, our gross underlying loss and LAE ratio for the year was 33.8%, an increase of 2.7 points from 31.1% during 2015, due primarily to an increase in fire and weather-related losses as well as lower average premiums. Retained catastrophe losses of $55,842,000 during 2016 included losses from spring storms in Florida and Texas, the August Louisiana storms, Hurricane Hermine, Tropical Storm Colin, Hurricane Matthew, and certain other losses not covered by our reinsurance programs. Prior year loss reserve development of $16,988,000 for the year was driven primarily by non-catastrophe claims in Florida for accident year 2015.
We reclassified certain amounts in the 2016 and 2015 financial statements to conform to the 2016 presentation. These reclassifications had no impact on our results of operations or stockholders’ equity, as previously reported.
Premiums receivable represents amounts due from our policyholders for billed premiums and related policy fees. We perform a policy-level evaluation to determine the extent to which the balance of premium receivable exceeds the balance of unearned premium. We then age any resulting exposure based on the last date the policy was billed to the policyholder, and we establish an allowance for credit losses for any amounts outstanding for more than 90 days. When we receive payments on amounts previously charged off, we credit bad debt expense in the period we receive the payment. The balances of our allowance for uncollectible premiums totaled $384,000 and $144,000 at December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively.
Should we determine that a premium deficiency exists, we would write off the unrecoverable portion of deferred policy acquisition costs and record a liability to the extent the deficiency exceeded the deferred policy acquisition costs. We did not have a premium deficiency at December 31, 2017 and December 31, 2016.
In January 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-01, Recognition and Measurement of Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities (ASU 2016-01). This update substantially revises standards for the recognition, measurement and presentation of financial instruments. This standard revises an entity's accounting related to (1) the classification and measurement of investments in equity securities and (2) the presentation of certain fair value changes for financial liabilities measured at fair value. It also amends certain disclosure requirements associated with the fair value of financial instruments. ASU 2016-01 is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those annual periods, with early adoption permitted for certain requirements. We are assessing the impact of adopting this new accounting standard on our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures
(c) Valuation models whose inputs are observable, directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term of the asset or liability.
The following is a summary of intangible assets excluding goodwill recorded as other assets at December 31, 2017 and December 31, 2016:
During the years ended December 31, 2017 and December 31, 2016, we realized recoveries under our reinsurance agreements totaling $186,104,000 and $18,412,000, respectively. These recoveries were primarily related to losses from Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and to Hurricane Matthew, Hurricane Hermine, Winter Storm Olympia, Tropical Storm Colin, tornadoes, thunderstorms, hail storms, and flooding in 2016.
•Income tax effects of those aspects of the 2017 Tax Act for which accounting under ASC 740 is complete,
The insurance industry is heavily-regulated. State laws and regulations, as well as national regulatory agency requirements, govern the operations of all insurers such as our insurance affiliates. The various laws and regulations require that insurers maintain minimum amounts of statutory surplus and risk-based capital, restrict insurers’ ability to pay dividends, specify allowable investment types and investment mixes, and subject insurers to assessments. Our insurance subsidiaries, UPC and ACIC, are domiciled in Florida, while FSIC and IIC are domiciled in Hawaii and New York, respectively. At December 31, 2017, and during the year then ended, our insurance subsidiaries met all regulatory requirements of the states in which they operate, and they did not incur any material assessments.
The amount of restricted net assets of UPC, ACIC, FSIC, and IIC at December 31, 2017 was $144,526,000, $162,234,000, $26,027,000, and $46,699,000, respectively.