I have a leaky roof. I had a contractor come out and give me an estimate, he said my insurance company would pay for the roof to be replaced is this true?

What is the reason that the roof needs to be replaced? That makes all the difference in whether it is covered by your homeowner's insurance. Regular wear and tear isn't covered.

Agreed, wear and tear is your responsibility. If the roof was damaged due to a storm or physical impact you may have coverage but not just age. In my area we had a very big hail storm, golf ball sized. Our roofs appeared OK but upon inspection the shingles were cracked from hail impact. Several folks on my block got new roofs via insurance coverage.

Leaky roofs generally didn't get like that overnight without something causing the damage. Check with your insurance company to see if you are covered. Don't just take the repairdude's say so.

If a tree hit the roof, hail damage, storm damage, etc. yes, I'm sure you'd be covered but as Nikosmom pointed out normal wear and tear is not.