AT&T Home Phone Fraudulent Billing Internet

I have a flat rate plan with AT&T that includes unlimited long distance, caller ID, call waiting, etc for about $62 per month. For the past 5 years the bill has never been consistent, always $5 to $15 higher. Have never been able to get a consistent explanation and get a different story from multiple people each time I call. Last month they disconnected service despite the fact that my account showed a zero balance when I logged in. For nearly 2 hours I was transferred to multiple people, each telling me a different balance owed and with different explanations. Finally the last person said there was a $150 balance showing but it was a mistake and restored service and explained that we'd get a partial bill credit for our trouble. This month on 1/11/13 I got an e-bill for $70.08. Not wanting to spend 2 hours fighting I just paid the extra $8.00. Today on 1/30/13 my service was interrupted. Logging into my account I found again that I had a zero balance. Navigating through their automated system I finally got a person on the line. First he said my account didn't exist. I assured him it did and that I was logged in at my desk looking at the bill detail. Then I was told that the $70.08 I just paid was for an old account they closed and that I owed another $150.00 on the 'new' account. Both accounts supposedly are in the same name, same number, etc. We haven't moved or made any changes. None of this makes any sense other than ATT is billing me twice and separately for the same account and I guess making the amounts owed up as they go and I refuse to play this game anymore. I have a feeling that the lady last month lied to me to improve her customer satisfaction rate, closed the account then reopened it to restore service, and now I'm forced to choose between paying $220 this month for a $62 plan or disconnecting altogether. I'm choosing Verizon wireless. No contract and $50 per month for unlimited talk, text, and web. I wonder how many people this happens to and how many just pay the bill because they feel they have no choice, especially the elderly that may be leery of changing to wireless service. If you have had similar experiences with ATT home service I urge you to consider an unlimited wireless plan from a competitor and phase this thieving dinosaur out.