sewer line issue/repair

Looking for a bit of advice. Found out Monday we had leakage in the back alley from our sewer line. Plumbers came Tuesday and determined they had to dig down to the main sewer line. The long and short is that my family and I were unable to do anything that would cause draining because the pipes were disconnected and any waste water would go into the hole, and as we are not the types to let people work in those conditions we did not use the toliet shower etc... Regardless of the price(which is of no complaint) and who in the chain is responsible for delay (subcontractor), the hired company is responsible in my opinion. To continue, Wednesday no work was done, Thursday the hole was finally dug down to the level required to complete, and Friday at 8 pm work actually begun and a finished product was given by 9 pm. My issue here is 4 days acceptable in anyway by industry standards? Do I have a legitimate complaint worth taking to state and city boards? Fully understanding that safety is paramount I realize that shoring was needed and the main delay. But I had to threaten to fire the company to get the work done. Was it irresponsible to take apart the pipes on Tuesday knowing they would have to dig down 15 feet? Was a solid steel shoring really necessary or are there other more expedient means to complete the task? Is it acceptable to leave contaminated dirt sitting above ground for days in a traffic area? I have my thoughts but just want to make sure before I send in official complaints. Company names and location will not be given out so please do not ask.

replying to Badweek1, Iggy wrote: Yep, you're absolutely correct to be peeved and should report them and the entire situation. In this day of rubber fittings and PVC plastic pipe there's no reason whatsoever that operation of the house was disrupted for more than a few hours.

They should've had the shoring with them or on the way, if they even needed it. Typically, a guy lays in the Backhoe's bucket or in a sling attached to it and is lowered down to cut the leak area free and a 2nd time to throw on the repair pipe, all in less than 30-minutes. They then test the repair to ensure there are no leaks and fill the hole back in.

It sounds like they were very bad at communication and just didn't want to tell you anything. Yes, maybe they were waiting for the Water Department, another Inspector, the hole to dry out or were asked to leave it open for a sewer condition assessment...if it's a very old area. That's all fine, but you should've been informed of everything and should not have been terribly inconvenienced.