Financial Advice Association Australia has acknowledged an apology from the Super Members Council after the peak body claimed some advisers were “dodgy”.

FAAA chair David Sharpe says he received a call from SMC CEO Misha Schubert, who apologised for the comments.

“The apology was genuine and I believe there was no intent to cause offence,” Mr Sharpe said in a LinkedIn post. “A positive to come out of this is a commitment from the SMC and the FAAA to work together on future issues as they arise.”

Mr Sharpe had called out the comments and defended the work of financial advisers before Ms Schubert called to apologise.

“Let’s be clear – the absolute vast majority of financial advice professionals work hard as the financial guardians to protect and grow the financial wellbeing of their clients,” he said. “Like all professions, there is a very small subset who don’t do the right thing, and we are committed to ensuring they are held to account.

“To use a broad-brush slur is offensive; it would be akin to slurring all super funds for the misdeeds of a few. I don’t suggest that all super funds are involved in greenwashing, for example, because some have been prosecuted by ASIC for this conduct.”

He said the SMC may have meant to refer only to the minority of advisers who do the wrong thing. “If so, it wasn’t made clear. I’ll extend the courtesy that this was clumsy rather than deliberate. Regardless, such inflammatory and inaccurate language does nothing to help consumers or anyone else.”

Ms Schubert has issued a statement about the SMC comments, saying they were not intended to be generalised to all financial advisers.

“I regret – and apologise for – any offence that the mischaracterisation of my remarks caused to reputable financial advisers who are working faithfully in the best interests of their clients,” she said in a statement to insuranceNEWS.com.au.

The spat erupted when the SMC last week called for stronger anti-hawking laws and consumer protections to stop “dodgy” advisers using clickbait social media posts, cold calls and pressure sales tactics to get customers.

The SMC referenced a warning last month from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission about cold-calling operators luring customers into receiving inappropriate advice to switch super funds.

In her statement, Ms Schubert said the comments had been “mischaracterised”.

“The Super Members Council deeply values the role of high-quality qualified financial advisers to help Australians plan for retirement, informed by advice that is in the best interests of super fund members,” she said.