Three companies with strong Charlotte ties aren't getting a lot of love these days - just the opposite, in fact.

Charlotte-based Bank of America; Tempe, Ariz.-based US Airways; and New York-based Time Warner Cable all made it onto The Atlantic magazine's "19 Most Hated Companies in America" list, released this month. The rankings were based on the American Customer Satisfaction Index, which rates 225 companies based on numerous surveys.

No. 19 on the most-hated list, Bank of America hasn't won a lot of public accolades lately, as it remains slumped in a bad mortgage hangover and continues to lose money.

Customers were peeved about high overdraft and other service fees, and also upset about rock-bottom interest rates for savings accounts (a problem that's hardly unique to Bank of America). Other complaints included that the bank, a huge mortgage servicer, is too slow to respond to its customers.

Spokesman Don Vecchiarello said customer service is a top priority for the bank. He said the recent elimination of overdraft fees for customers while making purchases has lowered both the number of closed checking accounts and customer complaints.

"We're trying to do more than ever to listen to our customers," he said. Internal metrics show that customer satisfaction rose last year, Vecchiarello added. He said the bank has more associates responding to customer complaints now as well.

Among banks, JP Morgan (No. 15) scored worse than Bank of America, dragged down by high fees and customer service problems.

No. 6 on the list was US Airways, which operates about 90 percent of Charlotte's daily flights and has its busiest hub in Charlotte. Despite two bankruptcies and a merger in the past decade, US Airways returned to profitability last year.

But much of those newfound profits, which amounted to about $450 million last year, came on the back of $500 million in a-la-carte service fees for things passengers used to expect for free, such as checked baggage and food. Those fees were a major factor in the low customer satisfaction score, The Atlantic said.

Poor baggage handling, low ratings for cabin crew service and poor communication about delays were also cited as common problems in the rankings.

Michelle Mohr, a US Airways spokeswoman, said the survey doesn't properly judge airlines. The most important metrics should be on-time performance, lost baggage and customer complaints, which she said US Airways has improved.

"Especially in terms of baggage delivery, we've really been knocking it out of the park," Mohr said. She said all employees recently received a $50 payout for ranking first among the legacy hub-and-spoke carriers for baggage handling.

Mohr also said the additional fees are a tough necessity.

"We understand that the travel experience has changed drastically," she said. "We know it's tough for customers, but it's a different business model where we're responding to sky-high fuel prices and an economy that's slowly crawling out of trouble."

Also making the list for similar complaints were American (No. 8), United (No. 7) and Delta (No. 2).

Finally, No. 3 on the list was Time Warner Cable, which employs about 3,000 people in Charlotte and is embarking on a $101 million expansion there. Common complaints included usage caps, quickly rising fees and poor service.

Spokesman Dan Ballister said the company has millions of satisfied customers, many of whom use some aspect of the company's services for more than eight hours a day.

"We're completely dedicated to providing customers with the highest level of service," he said, noting that Time Warner lets customers get in touch via phone, Facebook and Twitter.

He said the cable, phone and Internet giant is also rolling out a new company initiative to get all employees involved with reporting any customer service problems they encounter.

New initiatives such as mailed install-it-yourself kits and an application launch for Apple's iPad are also designed to upgrade customer experience, Ballister said.

Time Warner wasn't alone among television providers that were on the list. Dish Network, Cox Communications, Charter Communications and Comcast ranked 18th, 17th, fifth and fourth, respectively.